• by Ray Schultz , August 4, 2017

UK shoppers want one-click ordering and virtual reality. But few retailers are providing them.

Nor are retailers using the full benefits of email technology, according to a survey by Episerver.

Episerver, an email service provider, polled 1,200 UK consumers, 100 marketers and 100 brands in five key sectors.

It found that 70% of the companies use email marketing, and that 62% have implemented personalization into their ecommerce sales cycle.

But only 28% use triggered emails to re-engage non-converting customers.

At the same time, a mere 20% have incorporated virtual assistants such as live chat into their websites.

According to the survey, retailers rely almost entirely on “data-driven algorithms to communicate with customers.”

However, “marketers and merchandisers have for too long been failed by rules-based personalisation which is ultimately unmanageable and not scalable,” it adds.

With a 56% usage rate, mobile sites are the third-most popular marketing channel behind desktop websites and email, the study continues. Mobile apps are used by a mere 34% of the marketers, leading Episerver to wonder whether the mobile app boom is over.

“Back in 2015, every retail-focused business was expected to have a mobile app, regardless of whether it fitted with the organisation’s commercial strategy,” the study states. “As we move into 2017, this approach is changing, with more retailers now opting for optimised mobile sites instead of individual applications.”

Meanwhile, retailers have to scramble to catch up with consumers.

For example, one in five consumers want augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) built into their shopping experiences, the study notes.

Yet only 9% of the marketers have incorporated VR, and less are using AR.

In addition, 18% of consumers want one-click shopping instead of having to go to a store. And 17% would like “autonomous products that could restock automatically.”

Of the marketers polled, 46% say they cannot create an omnichannel experience. The reason: Lack of insight into customer journeys.

Marketers also feel hamstrung by their processes.

Almost half have to contact their IT departments every week in order to perform tasks like changing the content on their websites, the study notes.

And one fifth say that “working with other departments” is holding back their ability to drive change, the study continues.

Episerver predicts that cloud-based content and digital experience management tools will enable marketers to achieve full ownership of their sites — this year.

It also says that machine learning and other technologies will help marketers “autonomously deliver true 1-to-1 individualisation online and in-store.”