In 2012, e-Commerce sales reached $186 billion, according to comScore research. With retail e-Commerce expected to surpass $200 billion by the end of 2013, it is important for retailers to be present and active online.
However, the retail space has become more complex over the last year as consumers continue to hop from their desktops to mobile devices and in stores.
The explosion of smartphone and tablet adoption was expected to cause the demise of the PC, especially when it came to engaging consumers. However, the increase in mobile device usage has instead increased cross-channel engagement, helping to boost PC/desktop engagement by 17% since 2010.
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“PC and laptops are not going anywhere anytime soon; more than 90% of e-Commerce is coming from a PC or laptop,” said Christian Lunoe, Lead Analyst for the comScore Payments Practice, in an interview with Retail TouchPoints. “In the long term, mobile devices could cannibalize PC engagement with consumers, but as of right now, it has only enhanced engagement overall.”
New Loyalty Opportunities
Although 10% of all retail e-Commerce revenue is transacted through mobile devices, retailers are implementing cutting-edge strategies to ensure their brick-and-mortar stores stay relevant in an increasingly digital world.
“People typically think of the brick-and-mortar store as archaic, but they leverage the physical presence that digital players don’t really have,” Lunoe said. “But physical stores offer retailers options that digital-born retailers will have a hard time living up to.”
For example, offering a shopper same-day shipping because the item they purchased online is available at a nearby store can help increase convenience, and in turn, drive customer loyalty.
Lunoe also shared other omnichannel opportunities for retailers:
- Buy online, return to store;
- Geo-location: Deliver coupons and promotional content directly to a customer’s smartphone when they are physically near a store; and
- Personalization of content and offers based on consumer preferences.
Confirming the growing importance of personalization in omnichannel engagement strategies, Lunoe explained that content must be tailored from channel to channel, and “curated in order to get the most impact.”
It is no longer the “right approach to put all your content in the same format across all channels,” Lunoe said. “In the future, it is going to come down to personalization — consumers looking for any deals that are targeted directly to them.”
