Emotions in the multichannel
The time will come when both the Russian and European markets will achieve a balance between online and offline sales. However, now e-commerce and the mobile revolution are playing the role of drivers of modern retail. What awaits retail trade in the future and how consumers are changing - the answers to these questions are provided by the research of GfK Rus.
PROMISING TRENDS
The GfK Retail Trend Monitor 2017 study, which involved 346 retailers and experts from 51 countries, is dedicated to identifying trends in retail, as well as assessing the impact of technology on its development.
The results of the survey, in which the invited experts assessed their expectations in accordance with the proposed scale, showed that there are several main directions on a global scale. The first of them is the creation of convenient conditions for making a purchase, which corresponds to the opinion of 89% of respondents, the second and third are involvement in the Internet and mobile communications, which is confirmed by the responses of 85% and 84% of participants. Despite the fact that these three trends have retained their positions compared to the 2015 study, the relevance of mobile retail will increase. The role of the third direction is connected with the desire of modern consumers to make purchases at any time and everywhere through mobile devices, which stimulates the development of integrated multi-channel sales models.
The effectiveness of such systems will be determined by the level of service that retailers will be able to provide to their customers. The main focus of the study participants was on the development of personalized marketing and the growth of its relevance.
CONVENIENCE OF MAKING A PURCHASE
The desire for convenience of making a purchase reflects the need of modern buyers for the availability of goods and an easier process of purchasing them. This trend, as already mentioned, corresponds to the desire of people to buy in the place where it is convenient for them, and at the time when they want, using both the device and the channel of their choice. Mobile retail, according to the participants of the Retail Trend Monitor 2017 study, is now the best suited for solving this problem.
As mobile communications develop and become more complex, the dependence of convenience and ease of making a purchase on other factors will increase. So, according to the results of the survey of respondents, transparency of information will come to the fore in the future, which will allow buyers to compare the prices of competing retailers on the website of one of them.
Experts also expect that the comfort of consumers and the ease of purchasing goods to a greater extent than at present, will depend on the possibility of unhindered shopping through various channels, personalized marketing and individualized offers integrated with social media and advanced payment systems.
The emergence of new opportunities for convenient shopping that meets the expectations of consumers is associated with technological progress and developments, which, according to the participants of the Retail Trend Monitor 2017 study, have become the driving force of retail development.
PROMISING FORMATS
According to experts' forecasts, various versions of multi-channel formats, marketplaces and mobile retail will be the most successful. Traditional retail chains that are present online are promising, provided there are locations where you can pick up online orders. The same can be said about multi-channel retailers created on the basis of online stores. Marketplaces will remain in demand due to a wide selection of products of various brands. Mobile sales will make buying easier and more convenient, while consumers will be able to purchase goods using their own devices.
If we talk about pure formats – only online or only offline stores, – then their popularity will decrease. However, physical retail outlets, where visitors will be provided with a new interesting experience, will retain their attractiveness. It is the possibility of an experiment, emotions and impressions that will be the reason that encourages consumers to look into the store before buying. Sports brands have already adopted this strategy, holding training sessions in trading halls and offering product testing.
To be continued.
Text: Elena Varnina
Photo: shutterstock.com
