Cisco: 8 out of 10 consumers use digital shopping

Faced with the continued rise of the e-commerce boom, retailers will also begin to reshape the shopping experience of their offline consumers. In a research report released by Cisco today, it was found that digital content from the Internet is the most important factor affecting the purchasing decisions of most consumers in all channels. In Cisco's annual third quarter consumer research report, it is shown that the merchant's rating and user's comments will be the most powerful basis for users to make purchasing decisions. Consumers are eager to access digital information about products through various devices when shopping in stores. The research report recommends that retailers display digital information to consumers in various ways, which is conducive to better guiding customers' purchasing behavior and increasing store sales.

According to a study by Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) titled "Capturing and Retaining Digital Consumers," which examines technology-based shopping behaviors and their impact on the retail industry, most consumers believe that the "digital retail market" has an advantage over many retailers. Consumers want retail stores to communicate with their favorite websites. Two-thirds of consumers are interested in retail stores with personalized shopping experiences, and 85% of consumers like to access digital content in stores by themselves. One-third of users will use mobile search to guide their purchasing decisions. This is a 20% increase compared to last year.

Cisco and its partners are offering streaming, interactive digital service platforms, video collaboration and cloud computing solutions that will help retailers provide consumers with a faster and more engaging shopping experience. At the National Retail Federation and Expo (Booth No. 252) this week, Cisco will showcase several new solutions for retailers.

Highlights

Cisco surveyed 5,000 consumers in five countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Mexico and China. The main findings of the survey of some American consumers include:

Consumers are eager to access digital information about products in-store

• 78% of consumers use the Internet to search for and purchase products and services.
• 71% of consumers want to be able to access digital content in-store
• Consumers have equal priority to access digital content through retailer touch screens or personal devices
• 60% of digital consumers want more value in their shopping experience than ever before. Of these consumers, 53% want price transparency, 37% want an easier way to find products, and 39% want a more convenient way to purchase products.

Online resources have had a significant impact on consumers’ purchasing decisions

• All online information sources will have a significant impact on today's consumers' purchasing decisions. 52% of respondents believe that online ratings and user reviews on retailers' websites will directly affect consumers' purchasing decisions. 49% of consumers follow the advice of family and friends before making purchases.
• In the past two years, professional online reviews, purchasing experts, and blogs from consumer groups have indirectly influenced 42% of purchasing power, an increase of 13% over the previous two years.
• Online ratings and reviews outnumber store staff recommendations by 4:1.

How to stimulate consumers' purchasing desire: Self-service and personalized services that can access information through mobile terminals

• 65% of consumers search for product-related information online before purchasing in-store, an increase from 57% last year.
• 40% of respondents prefer to try on items in a physical store before purchasing online. This proportion is roughly the same as last year.
• The rise of cross-channel shopping is mainly due to mobile devices, which have increased by 20% on average compared to last year, and mobile searches in-store and online purchases have been welcomed by 29% and 33% of consumers respectively.
• 85% of consumers want to access digital content by themselves. Only 4% are willing to accept store staff to guide them through shopping.

• Two-thirds of consumers are interested in a personalized shopping experience, wanting interactions during shopping, and are willing to see retailers adopt data-based interactions.

Cisco also tested consumers' interest in several key digital service content. About 50% of respondents indicated that they were very interested in personal mobile shopping, interactive experience design, touch screen devices to help product selection and automatic ranking of consumers' online orders. The following service concepts will be presented by Cisco at the National Retail Federation Conference and Exhibition:

• Cisco Mobile Experience: Enables retailers to enable consumers to shop on the go more efficiently, build customer loyalty, and increase sales by using store locator capabilities.
• Cisco's Retailer Remote Expert Smart Solution: Enables consumers to have on-demand conversations with retailers or vendor experts through video assistance to gain more information about products and services, while also giving retailers more upsell and cross-sell opportunities

• Indoor Stimulation: allows shoppers to choose different furniture finishes, wall colors, flooring, and make them feel as if the furniture is in their room. The solution was developed in conjunction with Marks & Spencer, and Cisco, INDG and Marks & Spencer plan to test the solution in-store next.

Supporting Quotes:

• Dick Cantwell, Vice President of Cisco Internet Business Solutions, a leading global retailer, said:
• We can clearly see that consumers prefer to shop in bits and bytes with most of their shopping behavior and expectations being through online resources. In order to turn consumers into real buyers, retailers need to merge online and physical services to meet the needs of today's digital consumers.

• Laura Wedgley, executive director of e-commerce channels at Marks & Spencer, said:
• In today’s rapidly changing retail landscape, customers are in the driving seat, with more choices and information at their fingertips than ever before. As retailers, we have to change with them while ensuring we can provide them with a more personalized and exciting shopping experience that fits their busy lifestyles.

199it compilation and analysis: Aimee @cisico