Jenny Moore of independent strategy consultancy Yellowwood says that South Africa has seen good growth in on-line shopping, which was valued at ~ZAR2bn in 2010, with 30% growth projections. But Moore says the tipping point in terms of the actual numbers of people shopping on-line, especially for everyday items such as groceries, will only occur when retailers and marketers spend more time and money on understanding on-line shopping behavior and designing on-line shopping sites accordingly.
Moore adds that it is self-evident that on-line shopping behaviour does not mirror in-store behaviour and that you cannot achieve success by simply creating an on-line inventory of your in-store layout - just as you cannot replicate your print brochure on your website and expect it to work.
Yet while we spend money on eyeball tracking, trolley tracking and other in-store shopper behaviour observation tools - marketers are not exploring what will make on-line shopping easier, more interesting and more exciting - let alone reflecting this in the design of sites.
Research should range from practical issues such as exploring how shoppers prefer to navigate shopping sites and like in real life, this might differ depending on whether they are shopping for groceries, electronics or clothes to more complex questions of brand engagement and how this is built through the on-line shopping experience.
She expects that in the immediate future, on-line shopping sites that offer an edge with apps that focus on added-value content will be winners. This, for example, would include lists of what equipment you need to start a patio garden or calculators and counters that enable the user to make an informed decision. One of the big advantages of on-line stores over physical stores is the greater access to information that retailers and brand managers can build into the back-end to help shoppers make a decision.
Apps that facilitate a variety of payment options and auto-replenishment apps will also be winners. Essentially, an auto-replenishment app allows people to place orders for products up to six months in advance and have them delivered on a pre-set date monthly or weekly. Consumers are able to determine their consumption patterns by employing the product-usage calculators provided and can determine how much product they use and how often they should receive the products. Imagine having washing powder delivered to your door automatically every six weeks without you ever having to think about it - never mind actually go out and purchase it.
The massive increase in access to smart phones has changed the way that South Africans shop. And the numbers show this. However, on-line shopping is not just about making the purchase but it also offers a range of brand-building opportunities.
It is important that retailers understand that leading online shopper activities also include aspects such as price comparisons and product information sourcing. So, shoppers may research facts about a product on-line before making an in-store purchase. Shoppers may even do this in the aisle on their smart phones, whilst looking at a product. A typical example would be if a shopper is looking for a calorie-count or information on other dietary restrictions such as what 'gluten-free' might mean. Brand managers who work to predict what information a shopper might require in order to make a purchase decision will gain advantage. Clover is a good example of using a brand website to generate greater shopper interest in a relatively low engagement category. Clover includes a comprehensive product information in a user-friendly format, recipe suggestions and more recently, peer reviews that provide a social advocacy element to the brands.It is also notable that where brands enjoy high brand engagement scores, it is more likely that shoppers will interact with the brand on a variety of platforms. For example, this may include commenting on the Facebook page, visiting the website and noticing in-store marketing. This should surely then translate to the shopping site. Rather than a simple inventory - it may be useful, where there are high engagement categories, to link to tips, CSI projects and other brand-building elements. Obviously, this would require the retailer and the brand managers to work together.
In short, a more sophisticated understanding of the interaction between on-line and in-store shopping behavior and the application of that insight to create more relevant, integrated shopping experiences is key to driving on-line success.
For more information, contact Yellowwood Future Architects on 011 268 5210 / 021 425 0344 or visit www.ywood.co.za.
