The omnichannel purchase is becoming more and more a fluid experience for today's consumers.
They move easily between digital, physical, virtual and social platforms, going from navigation to research and purchase. This purchase behavior will continue to evolve, transforming themselves from a sporadic activity in which people are looking for a specific product on a specific channel in a specific period, to a fluid experience. People will discover new products and services through social feeds, watching streaming videos and playing video games. We can say that the next era in the sector will not concern the choice of the channel with which consumers interact, but rather the ability of retailers to approach consumers and places where they spend their time, where the demand, discovery, choice and consumption takes place.
It is much more likely that the younger consumers have purchased using the emerging media, with a probability of two to three times higher.
Therefore, retailers should consider carefully how they want to appear when the boundaries between business and content are confused more and more. The experiences supported by augmented reality and virtual reality, together with videos with purchase options, will become more and more important as consumer interest grows for the experience of purchasing technology. Currently, younger consumers are the most inclined to adopt these new tools. In fact, the probability that they have made purchases using emerging media, such as social media, virtual experiences and live streaming live, is two to three times higher.
The goal of finding the right customer and the right message is in constant evolution. Marketing professionals should make a wider use of artificial intelligence to always be ready to adapt quickly to the continuous changes that occur in the contact points of the channels and in the management of content. Solutions such as Max performance campaigns, based on Google AI technology, can help marketing professionals maximize performance on all Google channels.
The loyalty to the brand weakens and the value of collaborations increases: this is how the shops of the future will be.
The loyalty to the brand will be less important since consumers choose companies and products that better reflect their personal values and needs. In fact, consumer expectations regarding customization are increasing: 73% of buyers expect brands to understand their unique needs and expectations.
Dealers and brands that want to increase the chances of retaining customers should innovate offers through partnerships and collaborations. In fact, many intermediaries are already affirming themselves as important actors in the retail market. Among these are Superrapp as rappes in Latin America or Grab in Southeast Asia, which centralize the different needs of customers in a single place, financial services suppliers such as Affirm or Klarna, which offer deferred payment options such as "Buy now, pay after", aggregators of loyalty programs, social media apps and providers of Last Mile logistics services. According to Allied Market Research, it is expected that by 2030 the global market of Last Mile deliveries will reach 90 billion dollars. At the same time, by 2025 online marketplace will represent 45-50% of online expenditure. These data underline the importance for retailers to find the right partner who can help them differentiate and offer customers a better purchasing experience to be competitive in the future of the retail market.
Digital innovation in the retail trade is undergoing a revolution thanks to the Z.
The Z generation constitutes almost 30% of the total world population and is estimated that by 2025 it will represent about 27% of the workforce. It is also the first generation that has grown entirely in a digital context, spending more time online than any other group. In addition, its purchasing power is constantly growing.
Dealers must adapt to the specific habits and preferences of the Z generation, such as the way they seek information from reliable online sources. 46% of world consumers have already made online shopping through shopping channels in live streaming, where influencers lead live purchasing experiences. In particular, youtube is more likely that compared to other video and social media platforms, meet the main purchase needs of the Z generation, that they are quick decisions for impulsive purchases or the search for reliable indications and information for more weighted purchases.
Digital innovation in the retail trade is not limited only to online purchases. Worldwide, generation Z states that 42% of their expenses still happen in physical stores, as it happens for millennials, which spend 38% in this way. As a result, retailers will have to create more fluid omnican -patient purchasing experiences, exploiting digital technology in the shop to improve the service offered, testing new latest generation technologies, such as videos with purchase options, and obtaining real feedback from customers.
Retail evolution: more value and less risks for the consumer
After a long period of macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, consumers have become more attentive to value. Therefore, they attribute greater importance to the proposal of overall value of a brand compared to the savings of money. In reality, a recent study conducted by Google has shown that communicating the benefits deriving from the purchase at a given dealer, such as fast delivery and free returns, can have an effect similar to a discount on the product.
The growing expectations of consumers are accompanied by greater control of personal data. According to Kantar's global monitor, 79% of world consumers say they are worried about data protection and privacy on the Internet, while 72% believed they are at risk due to the improper use of their personal data by companies or individuals.
As personal identifiers, such as cookies and IDs of the devices, are gradually eliminated and marketing professionals adapt to an evolving regulatory environment, retailers and brands will need a solid owner data base for which consent has been provided. The apps will be fundamental for building direct relationships with customers, as they can contribute to the collection of owners' data.
In the context of a constantly evolving retail environment, it is essential that retailers and brands are agile and ready to adapt to the shops of the future. To do this, it is necessary to project yourself to a more fluid purchase experience, create strategic partnerships to improve their offers, turn significantly to the Z generation and offer consumers a greater value and minor risks.
How to prepare for the future of retail
In the next five years, consumers will continue to shop both offline and online. However, since online purchases will continue to grow, retailers will have to combine digital experiences and in the shop in order to maximize profits. Consumers will give their preference to dealers who offer an omnican digital experience, even if they continue to shop in physical stores. Here are some important considerations to keep in mind:
- Since consumers have many options to choose from, retailers should help them make conscious decisions by providing useful information for an autonomous choice. This will increasingly become a key element of differentiation.
- The future of retail does not concern a choice between physical or online presence. Dealers must instead focus on the integration of online and offline experiences, giving less importance to the place where the transaction takes place.
- Dealers must meet the growing expectations of consumers and offer coherent experiences. This means that they cannot go back compared to investments in digital transformation.
