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The online retail ecosystem is fast evolving, and increasingly, shoppers no longer simply go to the nearest store. Rather, they grab the nearest digital device. And with the world at our fingertips, why only shop domestically? In fact, digital analytics firm eMarketer projects that online retail sales will more than double between 2015 and 2019 and account for more than 12% of global sales by 2019. Retail therapy is giving way to e-tail therapy.
To gain a better understanding of how consumers are navigating the connected commerce landscape, the Nielsen Global Connected Commerce Survey polled respondents in 26 countries. We looked at how consumers are using the Internet to make shopping decisions both in stores and online, and we examined what they’re buying, where they’re purchasing and how they’re paying for goods and services.
While connected commerce is still largely a domestic affair, with consumers primarily ordering from retailers in their own country, cross-border ecommerce is a growing phenomenon. Shoppers are increasingly looking outside their country’s borders, as more than half of online respondents in the study who made an online purchase in the past six months say they bought from an overseas retailer (57%).
Nearly three-quarters of Indian respondents* who purchased online in the past six months say they bought items from an overseas retailer (74%). But this isn’t just a developing-market trend. Roughly two-thirds of respondents in the Western European countries in the survey say they purchased from an overseas retailer, including 79% in Italy—the highest percentage in the online study—and 73% in Germany....
Executives at a number of US retailers may be surprised to see Bloomberg’s headline on Friday: “Retail Sales Rise Most in a Year, Marking U.S. Consumer Comeback.”
This despite a number of America’s top retail chains reporting dire earnings reports and lowering their outlooks this week. Macy’s shares fell to a four-year low this week, with one analyst saying its woes could doom a third of US shopping malls. Kohl’s reported an 87% drop in net income for its most recent quarter. Nordstrom is cost-cutting following its drop. Gap Inc. may close more Old Navy and Banana Republic stores as its portfolio struggles. JCPenney shares sunk 10% on Friday morning after its disappointing quarterly report.
Kohl’s quantified its distress with the report of a sales drop of 3.7 percent and a profits plunge of more than half; sales at stores open at least a year were down by 3.9 percent. This followed an earlier report by Macy’s that first-quarter sales had fallen off by a huge 7.4 percent, while profit plunged by 40 percent; same-store sales were down by 5.6 percent, Macy’s fifth consecutive quarterly decline. Earlier, Gap said its comparable-store sales for the quarter would be down by 5 percent....
By analyzing returns data, retailers can better understand consumers’ preferences and behaviors. Additionally, this data can help organizations survey their internal supply chain and warehousing proficiencies.
However, there is still plenty of work to be done as retailers strive to minimize return rates and maximize customer satisfaction, according to research from Voxware.
More than half (57%) of consumers are returning items they ordered online or by phone due to retailer error. While 42% noted that the product’s size or color was incorrect, another 15% said they received the wrong product altogether....
Macy’s has announced they will shut down 14 stores as part of a restructuring effort, citing a shift in how consumers shop. The retail giant notes that this is part of a broader plan to meet consumers where they are: online.
The closed stores will mean a reduction of 1,343 jobs and should be completed within the next few months. The news has the average layperson assuming the worst of the brand, but Macy’s is no JCPenney, no, this is a simple effort that is common for large brands. These closures represent only a fraction of the brand’s 790 stores across America....
Department stores and mega-malls were among the main places for Americans to meet, socialize and, of course, shop. That’s all changed.
Department stores and other brick-and-mortar retailers registered another lackluster holiday shopping season, while online sales have remained upbeat since Cyber Monday. As more consumers spend a larger share of their dollars online, does this signal the days of shopping at department stores and shopping malls are numbered?
Cyber Monday sales this year were up 8.7 percent compared with 2013, led by a sharp increase in mobile transactions according to IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark. Sales over mobile devices jumped 29 percent . That’s a sharp contrast with the mostly bad news for brick-and-mortar stores, which saw about 6 million fewer shoppers over the Thanksgiving weekend, with overall spending down about 11 percent , according to the National Retail Federation....
As shopping shifts to the web and mobile, retailers need to be increasingly mindful of the different e-commerce channels and how their services and sites stack up against those of competitors, and the industry at large.
A few key performance indicators, or KPIs, allow retailers to benchmark themselves in specific areas of online commerce. Identifying the right areas for improvement can help businesses adjust and capture a larger share of the e-commerce and retail market.
Face it – it wasn’t all that long ago that you were super excited about your Motorola Razr, the word “tablet” referred to a stone slab and there was nothing “smart” about your TV.
Now, with everything from our toothbrushes to our thermostats connected to the Internet, 46% of consumers say they use multiple connected devices to accomplish a single task.
The burgeoning omni-channel landscape is changing the way that your customers interact, look for information and make decisions on a daily basis. Businesses looking to stay relevant and top-of-mind must rethink the way they structure their user experiences and manage customer data in response.
As channels continue to fragment and connected devices multiply, customer identity is becoming increasingly central to creating meaningful experiences that transcend touchpoints and grow relationships. Let’s take a look at 3 omni-channel trends and how focusing on customer identity enables businesses to build meaningful, unified customer journeys across every screen along the way....
Wal-Mart Stores said Tuesday that online sales broke company records, with more than 1.5 billion pages viewed on Walmart.com between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday. The retailer said mobile sales accounted for about 70 percent of traffic to Walmart.com during the period.
Wal-Mart also said same-day pickups set records too, with orders up 70 percent from the same period last year.
But online sales across the board for retailers grew a smaller-than-expected 8 percent on Cyber Monday after web promotions before and during the Thanksgiving weekend robbed business from what has traditionally been the busiest day of the year for Internet shopping.
As of 6 p.m. EST Monday, data from IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark showed Cyber Monday sales grew sharply slower than comScore data over the weekend which showed a 32 percent rise in online orders on Thanksgiving and 26 percent on Black Friday.
Cyber Monday sales were projected to rise between 13-15 percent. The results highlight the waning importance of traditional shopping days like Cyber Monday and Black Friday, which until a few years ago kicked off the holiday shopping season....
After using and reviewing lots of online store builders in the past few years, I’ve selected the top 10 ecommerce platforms that I think are the best fit for any needs. So before starting your online shop take a look at this comparison chart....
About 70 percent consumers are expected to use their smartphones for shopping in the coming year, a new study has revealed.
The study conducted by research firm IDC found that 69 percent of respondents agree that the smartphone is a critical tool for shopping and is going to transform the shopping experience. It was also revealed that about seven in 10 respondents checked prices using their smartphones, and five in 10 said that they checked reviews from their smartphones.
The research found that one in five survey respondents bought from a competitor while they were shopping in a retail store this holiday season, while one in three purchased much more online versus in a retail store this year compared to last year. The research analysed the app and mobile Web activity of over 10,000 smartphone users during the holiday shopping season and Amazon came on top with more consumer accessing its app while brick-and-mortar retailers lagged behind....
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Pre-tail seems to be one of the new buzzwords thrown around the CPG category. But what does it really mean, and should we be taking it seriously? Pre-tail refers to the entire journey of the shopper before they reach the point of purchase. Product research, browsing social channels, building shopping lists, and organizing coupons and rewards all fall into the pre-tail category. Various often-quoted studies by Point-of-Purchase Advertising International and The Marketing Science Institute have said that between 60 and 70% of purchase decisions are made at retail. Regardless of the exact number, that means at least 30 to 40% of consumers have made their decisions before they ever walk into a store, which is hardly insignificant. ...
The popularity of product purchase will naturally vary based on the need for consumers to touch and view products, but how big an impact does this make? The Office of National Statistic's report sheds light on this highlighting that Clothes were the most popular online purchases by 49% of adults, followed by household goods. The graph below provides a full breakdown of purchases by age....
Cashback industry leader eBates had a phenomenal year, returning $98,339,477 to consumers. Consumers are now embracing cashback programs and merchants are seeing the benefits of this powerful marketing strategy in driving sales. The future strength of the cashback industry is further reflected in the purchase of eBates for more than $1 billion by Japanese conglomerate Rakuten.
The value of eCommerce in the US is expected to climb 15.5% this year to US$304.1 billion. What does this tell us about the changing shopping habits of Americans?...
Before you’re going to (re)design your eCommerce store – either by starting from scratch or using an online shop builder – it’s crucial to take a look at other successful eCommerce designs that got their audience engaged through interactive user interfaces, eye-catching visuals, and good usability.
To help you make your upcoming eCommerce project outstanding, here I’m going to analyze 10 amazing eCommerce websites that I believe are worth seeing. May be, not all of them are perfect for you, but I’m sure you’ll learn a thing or two from each of them. Also, check this article for more Shopify reviews. Let’s go through them one by one!...
To understand how the best sell on social and earn a positive ROI on their social investment, we researched 100 of the top social selling e-commerce brands on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. For two weeks, we recorded each of their posts across six dimensions: 1. type (video, image, or text), 2. purpose (promote product or brand building), 3. copy, 4. whether it was linked, 5. whether it was original or user-generated content (including retweets and repins), and 6. posting time.
We then compiled this data and analyzed it for patterns. Here’s what we found to be the best practices for social posting that drives sales
The holiday shopping season is already here and that means it’s also discount season. However, whether you’re offering discounts on holiday specials or putting together your 2015 pricing plan, there are some helpful stats you should know about offering sales and markdowns. Let’s dissect 10 relevant statistics related to offering discounts...
Is Twitter integrated into your 2014 holiday marketing plans?
If not, there’s still time to get the most out of this real time social media platform even though Black Friday’s just around the corner.
Because over 50% of UK users turn to Twitter to discuss what they’re doingRIGHT NOW according to Nielsen. (Check out Dan Zarrella inspired tips for tweets and retweets.)....
comScore's experts predict desktop ecommerce to reach at least $53 billion while mobile is expected to bring in nearly $8 billion. Overall that indicates a 16% increase in spending over the 2013 holidays. Since Q4 of 2010, ecommerce growth has increased at least 10% Quarter over Quarter.
"The 2014 online holiday shopping season is shaping up to be a bright one with more than $61 billion in spending expected, representing a year-over-year growth rate of 16 percent across desktop, smartphones and tablets," said Gian Fulgoni, Executive Chairman Emeritus of comScore....
96% of consumers acknowledge having received mistargeted promotional information and 94% have taken steps to break off communication...
... The study conducted by Blue Research, an independent research consultancy, which surveyed a nationally representative sample of nearly 600 social media consumers in October 2013, confirms that marketers are wasting money providing content to consumers-ads, offers, promotions, etc., that has nothing to do with their interests. People are fed up and taking action. One of the ironies of marketing is that marketers are taught to “go where consumers are” but consumers don’t want marketers interrupting their online time....
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Cross-border e-commerce is growing quickly and evolving just as fast. This Nielsen report is a must read for marketers looking at overseas markets.