The cost of living crisis is forcing 66% of consumers to spend more time vetting before buying, according to new global survey
Akeneo, the Product Experience Company, today released its 2023 B2C Survey: Product Experience Satisfaction Around the World, an annual mission to understand how consumers make decisions when buying products, how product experiences impact those decisions and what product information is important to them.
The results reveal that consumers expect reliable, rich, consistent and informative product experiences across all channels they interact with. Consumers are also making purchases and looking for information about potential purchases in physical stores, not just exclusively online. Additionally, the results show that consumers around the world continue to prioritize shopping with brands that have similar values to their own, expect easy returns, and are open to using emerging retail technologies. Additionally, consumers are now more price conscious due to the cost of living crisis and are more selective in their purchases, often sticking with a brand they trust. All of this signals to marketers the need to prioritize aspects within their control in the current economic climate, such as product experiences, in order to tell strong product stories, build brand loyalty, and compel price-conscious shoppers. to choose their brand.
Top insights from Akeneo’s third annual business-to-consumer survey
- Bad product information kills sales: 60% of consumers will abandon their purchase if they get bad product information from any source.
- Consumers demand more information before purchase: 66% of consumers now spend more time validating purchases and need more product information.
- It’s still an omnichannel world, not entirely digital: 84% of consumers researched products online before buying offline (in a store), and 77% browsed products in-store but purchased online.
- Product information has a direct impact on return rates: 54% of consumers have returned a product due to incorrect product information prior to purchase.
- 40% of consumers rank an easy returns process as one of the top two services a retailer should offer.
- Consumers are open to new retail technologies: nearly 66% of consumers want to use one or more innovative technologies when shopping, including chatbots, voice assistants and virtual reality (VR) tools.
- Engaging Shopping Experiences Create Loyal Customers: Nearly 66% of consumers say they would become a loyal customer if a brand/retail offered a more engaging shopping experience.
- Transparency about values pays off: 40% of consumers are willing to pay more for brands whose values match theirs.
- Influencers persuade purchases: 58% of consumers have made a purchase based on the advice of an online influencer in the past year.
We talk a lot about “digital shelving”, which is of course important for buyers. However, year after year, our surveys confirm that consumers are interacting with brands across online channels as well as in person, highlighting the importance of an omnichannel product experience strategy, not just digital. If your product stories aren’t featured everywhere your buyers are, you’re not delivering on the customer experience (CX) promise you made to the board and your customers. This means that your CX strategy cannot exist without a product experience (PX) strategy. This report acts as a tool for retailers to understand consumer behavior, create exceptional product experiences, and apply that experience to every purchase and aftermarket channel.
For this year’s study, Akeneo’s goal was to uncover insights into business-to-consumer (B2C) product experiences, omnichannel shopping trends, and enhanced shopping experiences. To do this, Akeneo conducted surveys from February 22 to March 8 with 1,800 consumers aged 18 and over in France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia. and in China. Two key additions to this year’s survey asked questions about the importance of availability as a type of product information and sought to better understand the role influencers play in purchasing decisions. The report is referenced by retailers to offer better product information and enhanced product experiences.
The 2023 B2C Global Survey report can be accessed at this link.
About Akeneo
Akeneo brings a complete and composable SaaS solution to manage, orchestrate, activate and optimize the entire product form to drive compelling and consistent product experiences, supporting any path to market and all of the customer life cycle. With its open platform, a leading PIM for managing product data and assets, and a vast ecosystem connected with Akeneo App Store, Akeneo Product Cloud enables commerce companies to deliver world-class product experiences that drive growth.
Leading global brands, manufacturers, distributors and retailers, including BASF Group, Canon USA, Chico’s FAS and Forever 21, trust Akeneo to scale and personalize their omnichannel commerce initiatives. With Akeneo Product Cloud, companies can enable product experiences across any channel, improving customer experience, increasing sales, reducing returns, speeding time to market, and increasing team productivity.