Digital interactions are expected to influence 64 cents of every dollar spent in retail stores by the end of 2015, or $2.2 trillion, according to Deloitte Digital's latest study, "Navigating the New Digital Divide."
The figure compares to digital interactions accounting for only 14 cents of each dollar spent in brick-and-mortar stores in 2012, the first year Deloitte conducted the annual study, and 36 cents as reported last April. Last year's jump was attributed to more customers using digital devices before and during their shopping journeys.
The latest jump to 64 cents represents not only a further acceleration, according to the study authors, but shows how shopping is changing "as inspiration, information, and decision making have become decoupled from the physical trip."
Deloitte said an increasing number of consumers have already determined what to buy by the time they reach the store with their decisions supported by "sources of information they trust that are more often not controlled by the retailer."
Deloitte believes many retailers are "dramatically underestimating" digital's influence and using e-commerce sales as the way to measure digital success and required investments. However, e-commerce represented only $300 billion in sales last year while digitally influenced store sales were over five times higher, topping $1.7 trillion. Also as part of digital, mobile-influenced store sales accounted for $971 billion last year.
Source: "Navigating the New Digital Divide," Deloitte
"It would seem from our data that the degree to which consumers value the traditional in-store shopping and browsing experience is decreasing," wrote Deloitte in the study. "This raises the stakes on how retailers leverage digital in creating a more valuable in-store experience."
Deloitte's research also indicated that, in the last five years, the top 25 established retailers have lost two percent of their combined market share to smaller players with digital at their core.
Kasey Lobaugh, principal, Deloitte Digital's chief retail innovation officer, said in statement, "We are seeing a real change in the competitive dynamics, with digital as the great equalizer. The findings indicate that the large retailers are collectively losing ground to much smaller competitors."
Deloitte defines "digital influence" as the percentage of traditional brick-and-mortar retail sales that are affected by shoppers' use of digital devices: desktop and laptop computers, smartphones, tablets, wearable devices and in-store devices (i.e., kiosks and mobile payment devices).