Dive Brief:
- More than half of customers seek a feeling of joy when shopping online, but three-quarters say e-commerce lacks excitement, according to a survey of 6,000 consumers released earlier this month by Criteo.
- More than one-third of respondents say they lament the loss of unexpected finds. Consumers are more likely to make impulse purchases in store, with 36% making one in store versus 13% on a website.
- Digital shopping still has its perks. Three in five of shoppers say they turn to online shopping for convenience, while nearly two-thirds prefer e-commerce for its efficiency compared to shopping in-store.
Dive Insight:
While brands can benefit from making online shopping experiences more compelling, they shouldn’t lose sight of the efficiency that makes the channel attractive.
Delighting customers doesn’t mean adding fluff, according to Julie Geller, principal research director at Info-Tech Research Group. The process of instilling excitement into e-commerce requires understanding buyer intent, not just adding more options to click on.
“If someone’s buying a BBQ, maybe they’re dreaming of an outdoor kitchen,” Geller said in an email. “Can you help them plan it? Offer ideas, not just upsells? That’s where joy lives: in relevance. But to do that, you have to know what space your brand has permission to speak into.”
The right content can make digital shopping more exciting, according to Criteo’s findings. Nearly half of respondents say they are most satisfied with their shopping experience when they’ve found something new and unexpected rather than just sticking to their list.
However, companies should take care to avoid turning their websites into straight paths from the homepage to checkout, according to Geller.
“Discovery is a dopamine loop, but most e-commerce experiences kill it with over-optimization and lack of true customization,” Geller said. “When every path is a funnel, there’s no room for surprise.”
“Reccommended for you” options can flatten the discovery experience, according to Geller. Instead, options like interactive quizzes, community favorites and curated bundles can offer relevance without reducing the joy of discovery.
