Tech Tuesdays: Consumers Want a Better Experience Across Channels, But Few Companies Have a Clear Roadmap
Consumers crave a more seamless shopping experience across multiple channels, and new research from Bain and Aptos revealed that meeting that demand is a top priority for retailers and brands.
The research, released in a report titled “The State of Unified Commerce: A Bain and Aptos Study,” also showed that retailers and brands “that invest in the tech to deliver a seamless experience see significantly higher profitability and sales growth than their peers — but few companies have a clear roadmap.”
Nikki Baird, vice president of strategy at Aptos, said that the research, based on a survey of more than 300 industry leaders, showed “a gap between the priority around unified commerce in general and the respondent’s confidence in their ability to execute on it.”
“Nearly 100 percent of respondents said unified commerce is really important to them, but when you ask them if they have a strategy in place and how confident they are in achieving a strategy, then responses fall to 50 percent,” Baird said.
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Other key findings of the report include a desire to integrate back-end and in-store technology. But those polled also acknowledged that their physical stores are not ready to do so. “Retailers are more likely to succeed when they secure alignment across the organization and use data analytics to understand customer preferences across physical and digital channels,” the report stated.
When asked if there was a reluctance to make investments or if retailers were already saddled with so-called “tech debt,” Baird told WWD, “It’s a little bit of both. About two-thirds of respondents said that they basically have to self-fund these investments. So, they’re not getting extra money actually to achieve [implementing unified commerce]. And I think given the level of uncertainty that we’ve been living through, especially over the last couple of years, self-funding anything is tightly managed.”
Regarding retailers making these investments, the report’s authors said they are investing in developing a deep understanding of their customers and shopping preferences. “They focus on the complete tech stack, from customer experience to data systems, connecting the customer’s profile, history, rewards and incentives across physical and digital channels to create a single view of the customer and ultimately activate a truly unified commerce experience,” the report stated. “This enables them to deliver a tailored experience online or in physical stores. Importantly, these leaders also work to align the entire organization, especially leaders in the business and technology functions, on the value of creating this seamless experience, and they foster cross-organizational efforts to make it happen.”
In the fintech space, new research from Klarna showed some interesting trends as the market heads into the holiday shopping season. Researchers at Klarna polled 15,000 global shoppers and found that 36 percent of U.S. consumers polled said they “are open to exploring AI to enhance their shopping experience this holiday season, especially Millennials (53 percent), with Baby Boomers (16 percent) being the most hesitant.”
The report also noted that of those shoppers open to AI, 50 percent would use it for price comparison, while 44 percent would leverage AI for finding deals and discounts. “Baby Boomers open to using AI place an especially high value in using it for price comparison at (86 percent),” Klarna noted.
With buy now, pay later (BNPL), Klarna found that credit card debt is driving the use of the payment option. “Amid budget management concerns, the dangers of credit card debt loom large among U.S. shoppers,” authors of the Klarna report noted. “Over half (53 percent) of U.S. consumers express concern about incurring credit card debt during the holiday season; a concern that is slightly more pronounced among Gen Xers and Gen Zers at 58 percent.”
Researchers at Klarna also found that 47 percent of U.S. shoppers polled “believe they will be unable to pay off their holiday credit card bills in full.” In addition, splitting payments “into equal parts without extra cost or interest resonates with consumers, with 81 percent finding it useful during the holidays.” his sentiment is especially strong among Gen Zers (89%).
