* Younger shoppers shop online.
* Older shoppers skew to in person shopping.
* Tap image to for other age groups.
How Shoppers use Social media
How Shoppers use reviews
Top 10 sport activities
* More Women swim than Men.
* More Men Golf & Cycle than Women.
It is clear that there is an appetite for local shopping, but online. If not online already, use a proper store platform like Shopify for the best experience.
If online already, consider if the store is matching the standards expected in the study. A blogging site with buy buttons may help in the short term but a proper shopping platform is critical to long term success.
Free shipping remains the standout number in the study. If you offer it, make sure it is clear to see in all steps on the store. Reliable delivery & returns also rank high so the store must make this clear.
The comments support the idea that customers expect the online store to feel like a proper online store. So the UI must be first-rate & it is expected that reviews, testimonials, newsletter & chat augment the experience.
If sending a fragile item, be sure to show the great care you will take when sending it. This provides added confidence that the item will arrive in pristine condition.
For example, this Shopify store ships original art in boxed frames with glass, the explainer video is a great example of how to do this properly.
Reviews clearly matter & if not already in place use the tools in your Shopping platform to add them and ask for Google reviews. See our guidance here: https://sensorpro.net/reviews
Of note:
- Women start the buying process in September.
- Most Men start shopping in December.
- Younger shoppers start in November.
- Facebook ranks No 1 for both Men & Women.
- Facebook skews to the older group.
- Instagram comes a close 2nd for Women.
- Men tend to use WhatsApp, Youtube & Twitter more.
- Women buy more Books, Beauty products & Homewares than Men.
- But 41% of Men say they will purchase Beauty products.
- Younger shoppers say they will spend more than last year with older shoppers staying the same.
- Shoppers spending more than €1,000 are in the older groups.
- For shopping locally, Men cited parking as an issue, twice as much as Women.
- Comparison sites ranked low for reviews but more Men use them than Women.
- Swimming is the No 1 sporting activity with more Women swimming than men.
- More Men play Golf & Cycle than Women.
- More Younger shoppers said Made in Ireland or Made in EU would influence where they shop.
Vinny O'Brien is our ecommerce lead with 15 years ecommerce expertise at eBay, PepsiCo, Arnotts & Calvin Klein. He is a director of ecommerce with cruaoutdoors.com, a direct to consumer brand selling into the US. A mentor with L Marks London & Enterprise Ireland, Vinny is a part-time lecturer in Dublin City University & founder of the ecommerce summit conference, Ireland.
- Ensure social media activity is occurring daily.
- Make social media content relevant.
- The ShoppersView study shows how popular vouchers are, so have that front & center.
- Test Facebook advertising, it is where consumers are in huge numbers.
- Remember gifting is a gender-neutral activity but messaging can be split to make the recipient connect.
- Look at your onsite messaging and make sure call to actions are clear.
- Ensure shipping messages are easy to understand.
- Have a free shipping option.
- Think as a customer first.
- Use customers lists & communicate frequently.
- Surface products for people, do not rely on search.
- Upload customer lists to Facebook to make finding people easier.
- Give your customers reasons to come back & purchase again.
- Ask for post-sales reviews, they are important.
- Encourage early purchasing, volumes are up this year.
- Communicate reopening hours when appropriate & give customers choice.
- Word of mouth is important and your reputation matters so be consistent in social media conversations & follow up everything.
- Do not be shy in sharing other business stories from your local community on social media.
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