More than a quarter (27%) of Christmas shoppers find buying presents online just as stressful as going in-store – because poorly optimised mobile and omni-channel experiences add to the confusion and stress.
That’s according to new research from experience analytics firm Clicktale, which highlights the need for retailers to consider their customer’s moods and mindsets throughout the online shopping process.
The research, which surveyed more than 1,000 UK consumers, also discovered that women are more likely to feel stressed when shopping online than men. 28% of women considered shopping online to be stressful, compared with 26% of men. In general, women find Christmas shopping to be an altogether more stressful activity than men – with the spilt being 60% to 53%.
Commenting on these findings, Geoff Galat, Chief Marketing Officer at Clicktale said: “While it’s not unexpected that consumers find Christmas shopping stressful, it’s surprising to see that such a large percentage of shoppers consider purchasing gifts online to be just as stressful as shopping in-store.”
He continues: “With the rise of mobile and omnichannel shopping, consumers now have a huge variety of channels through which they can shop. At the same time however, each of these different channels must be individually managed and optimised by brands. Where once, retailers simply had to get their ecommerce stores right, they must now optimise those stores for customers shopping on Android mobiles, iPhone, tablets and even smartwatches.
“Omnichannel shopping and in-store crossover experiences have added to this difficulty, with many consumers now browsing for presents in store, before buying online. This growing trend could be one factor contributing to the rates of stress highlighted in our research, with buying online no longer necessarily meaning that consumers are staying home or missing the Christmas rush.”
Galat concludes: “One of the biggest benefits of ecommerce has always been the convenience and stress-free nature of shopping from home. As our research shows however, many of today’s ecommerce sites are still placing unintended strain on their customers. To overcome this issue, retailers must be careful to design their sites around customers’ shifting moods and mindsets. By monitoring subtle signs such as ‘rage clicks’ (angrily clicking content in rapid succession) online retailers can start to understand the emotions behind their customers’ purchase behaviors. This not only helps to reduce Christmas shopping stress, but can also increase sales by putting the customer in a more positive, purchase-friendly mindset.”
