NRF: Consumers Buy On Their Own Terms
A new IBM survey of more than 30,000 consumers released at this week's National Retail Federation convention shows that consumers are optimistic about the future and willing to spend. They are also more selective about their expenditures and require more personalized service from retailers where they choose to spend their hard-earned dollars.
Just off a major recession that changed many of their habits, shoppers are still looking to buy just what they need, find items on sale and delay purchases.
With this "new reality," retailers,
according to IBM, need to:
- Listen - Interact with consumers via social media such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, YouTube, and product review sites.
- Know - Make sure the shopper gets a personalized shopping experience by offering them promotions on items they buy often and remember preferred payment and receipt types.
- Empower - Enable seamless shopping across channels, and let
consumers decide how to interact with them.
- Forty percent of those surveyed want to check product prices in-store and get promotions based on items they scan.
- Fifty percent will use a mobile device to skip the checkout lane.
- Forty-nine percent use two or more technologies (website, in-store kiosk,
mobile device, etc.) to shop, up from 36 percent from a year ago study.
Jill Puleri, IBM's global industry retail executive said, "We're seeing consumers who are finally optimistic about the future. This new attitude, however, doesn't mean they're rushing to stores and spending like the pre-recession heyday."
One of Ms. Puleri's suggestions is that sales associates be redefined as "service associates" since shoppers said they don't want to be sold to. Presumably, retailers who go this route would need to be sure to back their associate relabeling up with training and new technology.