A recent report published by Econsultancy compared the attitudes of US and UK consumers towards multichannel shopping and service. Whilst a continually hot topic of discussion amongst retailers, it’s always of interest to drool over some statistics illustrating the evolving shopping habits of the modern consumer, and more importantly the true extent of the current opportunity.
This report is particularly telling. 33.5% of people surveyed felt that purchasing though different channels was very important, with the overwhelming majority (48%) appreciating the choice but not deeming it critical. Only18.5% of shoppers thought that multiple channels were unimportant to their shopping experience. Ultimately, flexibility equals convenience, so it comes as no great surprise to see such demand for multichannel shopping experiences.
When it comes to reserve and collect, however, there is a distinct difference between US and UK consumers. Us Brits are apparently far more likely to reserve items for in-store collection, with a staggering 74% using the service (vs. 43% in the US) – presumably in search of either instant gratification or avoiding costly delivery charges. Higher rates of car ownership, lower fuel costs and the greater distances involved in simply ‘popping out to the shops’ presumably contributes to the fact that reserve and collect is a less compelling option in the US.
Although only 13.3% of shoppers have used their mobile phone to make a purchase, a sure sign of the times is that18.5% use our phones to compare prices whilst we’re out shopping on the high street. A clear indication that brick and mortar retailers have to find new ways of adding value to their shopping experience in order to prevent their offering from becoming commoditized and shoppers being seduced by the pure-plays with the lowest prices..
Whilst a multichannel strategy clearly offers the broadest possible consumer experience, it is also somewhat of a pandora’s box for the retailer; the greater the flexibility offered in purchasing an item, the higher the consumer expectation is in terms of service… particularly when it comes to returns. Over ¾ of customers expect to be able to return an item they bought online to a local store. Whilst this may seem a no-brainer to the shopper, Snow Valley have found that in reality only half of the multichannel retailers they studied actually allow customers to do this. 
True multichannel integration is clearly still some way off, with many still struggling with the one major sticking point; managing the integration of their online and in-store inventory.
If there’s one conclusion that we can draw from this report, however, it’s that retailing is going in one direction, and fast. Despite the burden placed upon a retailer’s operational processes, a multichannel strategy is critical to remaining a competitive force on the UK high street. Consumer adoption of new technologies and devices means that retailers have to adapt in order to engage with them on their terms – and for those that do it successfully there is a serious bounty to be won.
