Deciphering customer spending patterns that influence e-commerce
E-commerce is slowing down after growing rapidly over the last ten years, which was topped by the pandemic-induced spike in online sales. Compared to 50% in 2021, just 8% of consumers now spend more than $400 a month online, suggesting a leveling off of consumer spending.
Due to these developments, more internet companies will have to fight harder for fewer cash from customers overall. Success in this battle increasingly hinges on knowing what matters most to internet buyers today and fulfilling their expectations.
Make it simpler for clients to pay how they choose.
Adding digital wallet payment options is a relatively simple way to improve customer experience (CX), according to data from ClearSale’s most recent survey of consumer attitudes on e-commerce, fraud, and CX. This is because 70% of consumers prefer to pay with digital wallets when they shop at a new store, and they create more convenience, which 66% of consumers say is critical to keeping them shopping online. Payments using digital wallets are particularly crucial for companies that serve a younger clientele. Digital wallets are the preferred payment option for 82% of Gen Z young people and 78% of somewhat older millennials. Over 50% of these customers would stop buying something from a website if they couldn’t use a digital wallet to make the payment.
Apart from providing customers with what they desire, digital wallets can also assist in addressing three of the top five reasons why customers abandon purchases, according to the survey: a lengthy or complex checkout process, a website that fails to convince users to trust it with their credit card, and the need to create an account. A digital wallet allows customers to exchange their important information instantaneously while protecting their payment information.
Make your shipping choices better.
Among the top five reasons given by customers for giving up on online purchases, delivery that was either too costly or too delayed was the most frequently mentioned. Giving your clients an option between free delivery, which could take a little longer, and expedited shipping, which might cost a little more, is the answer here. In this manner, clients may select the solution that best suits their requirements for every transaction. Baby boomer customers regard price and speed equally; they want the greatest bargains and they want them to come fast. In contrast, Gen Z, millennials, and Gen X consumers rated delivery speed and convenience as less essential than price in the attitudes poll.
Give your clients confidence
In the consumer attitude poll, over half of participants (47%) predicted that they will encounter more online fraud in the upcoming year than they did in the previous one. Not surprisingly, 88% of respondents stated that they investigate new online retailers before making purchases from them in an effort to prevent scams, and 83% of them will stop doing business with a company if they encounter fraud there.
Gaining and keeping the trust of your customers depends on having a robust cybersecurity policy that protects your website, client data, and fraudulent order detection. Talking to your clients about data protection is also important. According to 78% of study respondents, when they purchase online, they search for payment security certification messages.
Address the issue of your misleading decrease.
Avoiding false declines is just as important to providing a positive customer experience as preventing fraud. For internet firms, rejecting orders as fraudulent while they are valid is a common issue. About 58% of all denied orders are genuinely valid, according to our statistics, which are based on an examination of previous declined orders with clients. Businesses incur immediate costs as a result of losing those orders, but over time, the costs increase. On average, 32% of consumers who are turned away will vent about their experience on social media, and 41% of them would never come back.
These figures, however, differ significantly per generation. Social media complaints about a downturn are most common among millennials (43%), followed by Gen Z (41%). These grievances have the potential to harm your reputation and increase the difficulty and cost of gaining new clients. On the other end of the scale, 56% of baby boomers would never return to your store, indicating a significant loss of customer lifetime value, while just 22% will complain about a reduction on social media. Your company may accept more good orders and improve your customer experience (CX) without raising fraud rates by evaluating all flagged orders instead of automatically rejecting those that raise alarms.
Monitor your CX performance and make any necessary adjustments.
Establish a baseline when you begin your CX enhancements so you can monitor their effectiveness and determine their true performance. You could discover that some require constant modification over time in order to stay up to date with consumer tastes and behaviors. For instance, digital wallets are currently quite popular among younger consumers, but with time, the most popular wallets could change. Even if spending in your industry or the economy as a whole is slow, your company will remain more competitive if you monitor your CX’s performance and trends.