SINGAPORE – Feb. 13, 2020 – Zebra Technologies Corporation, an innovator at the edge of the enterprise with solutions and partners that enable businesses to gain a performance edge, has revealed the results of its 2020 APAC Shopper Study, the industry’s only market tracker that analyzes the attitudinal behaviour of shoppers, retail associates and retail executives, and examines the retail and technology trends impacting shoppers’ purchasing behaviour.
Eighty-six per cent of surveyed millennial shoppers and more than half (56 per cent) of Gen X shoppers indicated they shopped in a store and left without a purchase only to end up buying the item online, compared to only 25 per cent of Boomers. Shoppers indicate out-of-stock items as the top reason for leaving without a purchase.
Shopping often starts before customers enter a store. Customers expect that items they saw online are in-stock – achieving what’s hardest for e-commerce to deliver – instant gratification. When it comes to brick-and-mortar purchasing, price is a top priority for shoppers. Almost three in ten (29 per cent) of shoppers surveyed report leaving a store because the price did not match the one found online.
On the flip side, e-commerce has created a new retail reality where consumers expect unlimited returns. The returns experience continues to remain a source of shopper discontent and represents a perception gap between retailers and shoppers. Retail executives believe that 80 per cent of shoppers are satisfied with returns, but only 57 per cent are.
It is no surprise that 81 per cent of retail executives agree managing returns of online orders is a significant challenge. About 51 per cent of retail executives have started or are planning to upgrade their returns management technologies in the next five years. Stores are doubling as distribution centres, fulfilling online orders to streamline processes and move services closer to end-customers.
“Our study shows that while better services will help retain current shoppers and attract new ones, retailers need to make sure they have the basics right when it comes to product availability, ease of finding products, returns and exchanges,” said George Pepes, APAC Vertical Solutions Lead, Healthcare and Retail, Zebra Technologies. “To win with shoppers today, retailers must deliver the seamless, multi-channel experience that customers expect and leverage technology to provide more personalized services for managing inventory and building smarter operations.”
Retailers are working hard to implement the advancements shoppers have come to expect from the online shopping experience. A majority (63 per cent) of shoppers believe that associates using handheld computers with built-in scanners can improve the shopping experience. Nearly half of associates report in-store mobile devices to help them provide a better shopping experience by enabling them to: find correct prices (48 per cent), answer questions (46 per cent) and save customers’ time (42 per cent).
The future of retail belongs to the digital natives who expect technology-enabled experiences. The likelihood of shoppers using in-store technology services:
- Sixty-three per cent of shoppers are likely to use video touchscreen to locate items, check prices, receive promotions and scan barcodes
- Fifty-nine per cent of shoppers are likely to use location-based coupons sent based on a shopper’s in-store location
- Fifty-eight per cent of shoppers are likely to use auto-checkout services where they can leave a store without stopping to pay for items
“Brick-and-mortar stores in Southeast Asia have not only withstood the digitalization of retail, but they have also become more influential in shoppers’ purchasing decisions,” said Fang-How, Lim, Regional Director for Southeast Asia, Zebra Technologies. “The reality is that there is no one-size-fits-all technology architecture that will work for every retailer. There are, however, a set of real-time technologies that have proven to be most impactful when it comes to improving fulfilment speed and accuracy. As leading retailers adopt technology to enhance the shopper experience, Zebra has introduced a slew of new products to meet this growing demand, including the EC30 mobile computer, ZD200 Series desktop printer and MP7000 grocery scanner scale. In today’s on-demand economy, having visibility over price changes or product location, and the right tools to act instantly can significantly improve consumers’ online and offline shopping experiences.”
To elevate the shopper experience and keep customers coming back, retailers need to deliver on the most basic need – convenience – by prioritizing expanded fulfilment capabilities such as third-party logistics (3PL), while also taking care to build innovation into the core of their business.
KEY REGIONAL FINDINGS
Asia-Pacific
- Nearly 58 per cent of shoppers prefer to shop with online retailers that also have brick and mortar locations.
- Forty per cent of shoppers prefer to make purchases via mobile devices and smartphones.
Europe and the Middle East
- Two-thirds (66 per cent) of shoppers reported satisfaction with their ability to pay anywhere in the store.
- Only 14 per cent of shoppers completely trust retailers to protect their personal data.
Latin America
- Seventy-one per cent of shoppers said self-checkout provides them with a better shopping experience and 64 per cent prefer using the technology to a staffed checkout lane.
- More than eight-in-ten (83 per cent) shoppers are interested in receiving a coupon or cash-back offer in exchange for waiting up to four days for delivery of an online purchase.
North America
- Only six per cent of shoppers said they completely trust retailers to protect their personal data, the lowest score of any region.
- North American holiday shoppers expect to spend 58 per cent of their holiday budget in physical stores.
