Ten myths about online shopping debunked

PwC’s annual global survey “Demystifying the online shopper: 10 myths of multichannel retailing” takes a closer look at the conventional wisdom about online consumer behaviour and debunks ten common myths. FashionUnited sums up the

study’s highlights.

For this year’s survey, four more countries (Brazil, Canada, Russia, Turkey) were added to last year’s seven (China, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the UK, the US), resulting in feedback by more than 11,000 multichannel shoppers on four continents.

And indeed, there are many lessons retailers and brands can learn from the study. The first myth it did away with is that social media will soon become an indispensable retail channel. On its own, social media is not that but rather an aggregator that drives sales across all channels, not just the online ones.

Will stores turn into mere showrooms?

The second myth is a worrying one for many retailers, namely that stores could become mere showrooms in the future. ‘Not likely’ say the multichannel shoppers surveyed – they would rather browse around online and then visit a store to buy the desired product. “If the store format can adapt, it may still have a bright future,” the study authors agree.

Skipping ahead, myth no. 4 claims “as the world gets smaller, global consumers are getting more alike”. Not very likely again, rather the opposite is true: regional and national differences far outweigh the similarities between customers worldwide. For example, while a whopping 70 percent of survey participants from China shopped online at least once a week, that number was just 40 percent in the US and the UK and a mere 20 percent among European consumers from the Netherlands, France and Switzerland. Retailers and brands would thus do well in adapting their approach according to their customers’ preferences.

Jumping to conclusions would also lead to the fifth myth, namely that China is the future of online retail. Though Chinese customers on average are quite online savvy and China is at the forefront of some key trends, the study authors Dennis van Amijden and Joost Huismans believe that China’s multichannel and online model is unique and can’t be applied everywhere. The two retail and consumer experts caution that “every lesson learned there won’t necessarily be transferable”.

Debunking myth no. 6, it would also be incorrect to assume that domestic retailers will always enjoy a ‘home field’ advantage. Given the global nature of the playing field, international retailers have been and are making inroads into destinations far from their home market.

Advantage retailer or brand?

Skipping ahead again, myth no. 8 looks at retailers versus brands, assuming that the former are in a better position given their closeness to consumers. This does no longer hold true as an increasing number of consumers (35 percent on global average) are shopping directly from manufacturers and many no longer distinguish between retailers and their favourite brands. In China and the US, that figure is even higher – with 56 and 52 percent, respectively.

The last two myths are interesting because they have prevailed for a long time. Myth no. 9 is that online retail is cannibalising sales in other channels while myth no. 10 assumes that low price is the main driver of customer spending at their favourite retailers. Both are not true. Instead of shifting channels, consumers are actually spending more at their favourite multichannel retailers. And price is not the most important criteria when choosing a product – delivery, innovative marketing and product quality are important drivers behind purchase decisions (see image).

This and more are some of the areas that “Demystifying the online shopper” sheds light on. The complete report, video interviews and more can be found online.

Images: PwC / Demystifying the online shopper