Narvar Survey Reveals Early Shifts in Shopper Behavior

According to a new report, the findings of which were shared with MMW this morning, people are exhibiting more complex and varied preferences for how, where and why they communicate with retailers.

This is amplified by contrasting preferences between generations in the face of emerging technology, according to the report “Bots, Texts and Voice: What Cuts Through the Clutter,” published by Narvar.

Per the deatils shared by the post-purchase experience leader, Narvar surveyed 1,290 U.S. shoppers who made an online purchase in the past six months to understand how preferences for communicating with retailers are evolving.

“Bots, voice assistants, smart homes and other AI-informed communications are top of mind for nearly every retailer today. The technology innovation complicates what we already know – that customer communications are never one-size-fit-all,” says Amit Sharma, CEO of Narvar. “With this research, our mission is to equip retailers with the insights they need to navigate nuanced communications and ultimately create the best experiences possible.”

77 percent of American adults own a smartphone; every month, people exchange 2 billion messages with Facebook Messenger’s 100,000 active bots; and 30 million households will have a voice-first, in-home device such as Amazon Echo and Google Home by the end of 2017. These technology-driven communication channels are starting to change the way people want to interact with retailers. While more than 80 percent prefer to get messages from retailers via email, 38 percent now want to hear from retailers on multiple channels. According to the survey, 79 percent of shoppers have also used text messages, messenger apps or voice devices to connect with retailers.

“People expect a personalized, effortless online shopping experience from discovery to post-purchase. This is only amplified with the introduction of new communications channels,” said Sucharita Mulpuru, a retail industry analyst who collaborated with Narvar on this study. “Retail brands should seize the opportunity to learn from and optimize consumer communications through both existing and emerging channels. The first step is to understand how their customers want to communicate based on elements like urgency, type of message and specific channel. ”

To learn more, check out the full report here.