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More than half of consumers say the UK customer experience remains disconnected

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More than half (53%) of UK consumers believe that UK retailers provide a disconnected shopping experience that does not adequately join online and the store – and 61% say that they would consider changing retailers due to a disconnected shopping experience.

“Today’s customers are now expecting more than a transactional relationship with retailers; they want a seamless and personalised journey that reflects the context of how they shop across devices and channels,” said Guy Murphy, industry technology evangelist, at MuleSoft. “Retailers can ill afford dissatisfied customers, yet as the figures show disconnected data and systems continue to severely impact customer loyalty.

“It is still common for inventory and order management systems to not be integrated, meaning shoppers receive inaccurate product availability information. For retailers striving to offer a great omnichannel experience, this is unacceptable. Retailers must be ready to engage with customers across multiple touchpoints and provide a consistent experience throughout, otherwise customers will simply shop elsewhere.”

For The Connected Consumer Report, Opinium Research questioned 2,006 UK adults in March 2017 on behalf of MuleSoft.

The findings suggest that almost two-thirds (63%) of consumers believe it is unacceptable for retailers to show inaccurate information regarding what items they have in stock when they are shopping either online or in store.

More than half 54% of UK consumers said their retailers did not provide a personalised service. Consumers felt retailers were performing significantly worse when it comes to personalisation than other industries. For example, in the banking sector, only 37% said their banks did not provide a personalised service.

Consumers expected retailers to know their customer information whether they’re shopping in store, online or on their phone, but the study found that almost half (46%) had frustrations with having to re-input or re-submit personal information they had previously provided.

The study also found that more than a quarter (28%) of those who had submitted a query or request for information found it could not be answered, or took longer than anticipated, because retail staff did not have access to all the information they needed.

Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of consumers had given up on an activity or request because sharing information with a retailer was too difficult.

“Considering the vast amount of data consumers share with retailers, both in-store and online, it is shocking that retailers are still falling short when it comes to providing a personalised experience,” said Murphy. “Today’s shopper expects a fully connected and highly personalised experience, and to do this, retailers need to unlock customer data from the siloed systems it currently resides in. This is no small undertaking for bricks-and-mortar retailers with legacy technology and processes, but it is imperative if they are to regain market share from Amazon and other competitors.”

The survey was commissioned by MuleSoft and independently carried out by Opinium Research. The UK sample size was 2,006 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken online between 14-20 March 2017. The figures have been weighted and are representative of relevant adult populations (aged 18+).

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