Checkout This
How important is it for customers to go online, purchase what they’re seeking, and easily checkout? More than half say they now decide where to shop online based on a brand’s checkout process. That interesting discovery is what 55.4% of the 600 consumers surveyed last September revealed to Bread, an online payment and financing platform.
Brands who think the checkout process is no big deal may wish to consider Bread’s other findings. Nearly three-fourths of those surveyed (73.8%) said they weren’t even certain they would patronize a merchant who had a tough checkout process. Marketers who succeed in getting prospective customers to their website or social media platforms are only halfway there. If these prospects have difficulty checking out, chances are they’ll never return Plus, they’ll likely share their experience with others.
Changes in Online Buying
When Bread conducted its September survey, they found that consumers were spending 51.2% more online than they were in June. What’s promising for online brands is that nearly half of those polled (47.2%) said they expect to spend even more online this year compared to 2020. However, where the money is being spent has changed. Basics and everyday essentials were the priority in September.
When asked what they were spending more on then, groceries were identified by 81.3% of consumers. Much farther behind were clothing and apparel (33.3%), electronics (25.6%), home décor (24.2%), pet supplies (22.3%), and beauty care (21.9%). Garden, arts and crafts, home office, appliances, and jewelry trailed even more behind.
What Brings Back Customers?
Convenience topped quality as the top reason given to Bread. 30.3% cited convenience and delivery as the main reasons they made repeat online purchases. 25.1% cited quality, closely followed by 24.9% who named price. Though none of the stats are overwhelming, what’s significant is that 69% said they had made a repeat purchase within the past 30 days and 65.5% revealed that they intended to make another one within the next month. 63.1% said ease of paying influenced their repeat buys.
Big Ticket Items
Brands with larger price tags should find these survey results interesting. On purchases of $1,000 or more, 51.9% of shoppers said they would prefer interest-free installment payments. Nearly half (48.1%) said they would prefer paying cash if they got 10% off. What was also revealing is that nearly the same number of consumers who wanted interest free installments said they would make even larger purchases if their wishes were granted.
There were two other revealing results among big purchasers. 41.9& said they would make repeat buys if interest-free financing was offered. 40.3% admitted they would be less likely to return purchases for that same reason.
Summary
Online sellers can anticipate more online spending this year. The key to keeping them, however, is making the shopping experience seamless and as easy as possible, especially the checkout process. For higher-priced items, point-of-sale financing will go a long way as well in helping secure the sale. Maintain rewards and incentives but recognize that they no longer change buyer behaviors according to this poll.
