Commentary
Speed And Ease Make "Great" Online Experience
- by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, November 9, 2017
According to a new study from Cloud IQ, published by Marketing Charts, 47% of online shoppers in the US, UK and Australia deemed speed “critical” to a great online experience, with another 47% saying it’s “important.” Close behind 45% said it’s “critical” that the experience be seamless and easy, and 47% saying that it is “important”
Contributers To A Great Online Experience (Online Shoppers) | ||
Online Experience | Critical | Important |
Speed (can find and buy what I need quickly) | 47% | 47% |
Seamless/Easy (Smooth, continuous and effortless experience across different channels) | 45 | 47 |
Sense of Control (can search for answers, ask for help, updated, sense of being in control | 39 | 51 |
Individualized (Treated as an individual and offered products, discounts, communications, based on specific preferences and needs) | 27 | 55 |
Interactive, Engaging (Interesting, fun to use) | 24 | 55 |
Proactive (Anticipated needs, provides timely offers, alerts and reminders) | 21 | 52 |
Source: Published on Marketing Charts 11/17; Data Source Cloud IQ | ||
Other research from SUMO Heavy showed that US adults said the most important aspect of a great e-commerce website is its usability and functionality. Separately, research from the CMO Council said that for consumers, the most important attribute of a great customer experience was a fast response time to the customer’s needs and issues. And, in previous research from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), fast response times and a simple purchasing process emerged as by far the leading elements of an ideal customer experience.
In each of the above studies, the basics (speed and ease) outranked personalization in importance. Even so, 27% of respondents consider it “critical” that brands make their shopping experiences individualized, and 55% find it “important.” That adds up to individualization being important for more than 8 in 10 shoppers. Most commonly, Individual treatment for shoppers is being rewarded with highly relevant offers (77%), being remembered (60%), feeling listened to / understood (59%), and feeling in control / opting in (57%).
Brands that are able to offer meaningful experiences, individualized content and real-time relevant offers are likely to be rewarded. At least two-thirds of shoppers claimed that this would at least possibly result in them being more likely:
- To say positive things about the brand to others (70%)
- Buy from the brand (70%)
- Choose the brand over other brands with the same products at the same price (67%)
The results are based on a survey of more than 2,500 adults in the US, UK and Australia, all of whom buy products and services online at least every 3 months.
For additional information from Marketing Charts,please visit here.
Jack Loechner is the Editor of The Center for Media Research's daily Research Brief. You can reach him at jack@mediapost.com.