Free delivery – whether it’s home delivery or click and collect – remains a key deciding factor for online shoppers, according to new research from KPS.
In the company’s First Look to Last Mile report, more than 1,421 European shoppers were surveyed. The results showed that more than half (57%) cited it as a key factor in their buying decision and that it would impact whether they bought from a certain retailer or instead looked elsewhere.
The survey also showed that 35% aren’t prepared to pay for deliveries under any circumstance, 27% tactically hold off ordering until they receive a free delivery offer and the same amount would also abandon a purchase if free click and collect wasn’t available.
Customers are also being sneaky, adding items they don’t want simply to avoid delivery charges. 31% of shoppers admitted to ordering additional items in order to reach a minimum spend threshold to qualify for free delivery to store, with the intention of returning the additional items to get a refund as soon as they pick up their order in-store
Frank Lochbaum, managing partner at KPS, said: “Retailers have never known more about the customer journey; how they research purchases; how they move between online and offline channels; their preferred delivery methods and so on. Yet, ironically, and in spite of all this information, it has never been harder for retail businesses to retain customers as their demands around certain elements of the buying journey, including fulfilment, shift.”
“The data-driven nature of modern retail has meant many retail organisations have become obsessed with drilling down into the detail of consumer interactions, rather than looking at the bigger picture of their business ecosystem and the processes within it. Rather than spending time and resources seeking incremental gains, retailers should focus their efforts on pursuing end-to-end agility to meet diverse shoppers’ needs.”
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