This e-Retail Insights paper provides a high level overview of the US e-Retail Landscape. Featured insights include the role of search in consumer purchase behavior, trends in smartphone + tablet usage and the valuable intelligence that can be leveraged from your website. View additional Levelwing retail industry insights + case studies: http://ow.ly/gNHY6
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WHY DO I CARE?
Glad you asked…
In this report you will find a high-level overview of the eRetail landscape. It is important that we keep a pulse on the
industry and CONSUMER BEHAVIORS in order to identify OPPORTUNITIES that transform our businesses.
At Levelwing, we specialize in analyzing the paths that contribute to meaningful BUSINESS OUTCOMES. These
paths are illuminated through the analysis of data collected via website analytics, customer relationship databases,
consumer research, phone call logs and even recruitment application databases (yes, we actually enjoy working
with the HR folks in addition to the marketing teams).
Our team of analysts, statisticians and strategists are obsessed with data and more importantly are experts at
TRANSLATING THE DATA INTO A MEANINGFUL STORY that has real business applications and implications.
Please enjoy some of the insights contained within.
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eRETAIL INDUSTRY TRENDS
56% of U.
S. online ad
pper will spend
average US sho e
more price
-conscious
ults say the
y are
The than they w
$419 onlin a year ago ere
2% boost from
this h oliday season, a 1 N
Retail Onli orth American Techn
last year
ne Benchm o
ark Recont graphics
act Survey,
Q3 2012
12 (US).
tail Forecast, 20
line Holiday Re
Forreste r Research On
Cross-channel* sales will
By 2016, $327 b i l l i o n w i l l be account for $1.660 trillio
n
spent online in t he US, 9% of of total US retail sales by 2
016.
overall US retail sales.
Forrester Research US
Cross-Channel Retail Fo
recast, 2011 To
o 2016
st, 2011 T 2016, June 2012
arch Onlin e Retail Foreca
Forrester Rese
Not only are shoppers spending more money online than last year, they are increasingly more price-conscious
and using online research methods before making purchases, both online and offline.
*The volume of sales that happen in physical stores as a result of web research
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WEB-INFLUENCED SPENDING
4000
3500
3000
(In billions)
2500
2000
1500
$1,552 $1,660
1000 $1,320 $1,429
$1,103 $1,206
500
0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Online retail sales Web-influenced offline spending Non-web-influenced offline retail sales
U.S. shoppers are increasingly using web shopping research (e.g., using a store locator, reading customer
reviews) and ultimately converting offline. Web-influenced offline spending is projected to increase to $1.660
trillion; 44% of total US retail sales. Web properties play an essential role in the research phase for consumers
who purchase both online and offline, emphasizing the importance of optimizing digital assets to meet the
needs of these research-seeking consumers.
Source: Forrester Research Web-Influenced Retail Sales Forecast, 2011 To 2016 (US)
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SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS FOR PRODUCTS
SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS PAGE FOR ‘LAPTOP’
Retailers (both online and with brick-and-mortar
stores) make up the majority of search engine results
pages for product searches across multiple
categories.
In addition to PAID SEARCH PLACEMENTS and
ORGANIC SEARCH RESULTS consumers are often
seeing a GOOGLE SHOPPING sponsored box in the
search engine results page for their product search.
Google Shopping product highlights are based on
product listing ads and allow consumers to easily
compare and purchase products.
*paid placements are paid advertising available through search
engines, organic search results are the listings that are free and do
not require a hard media investment
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REASONS FOR BRAND ENGAGEMENT
54%
Receive deals, discounts, or special promotions
Get free samples
Earn customer loyalty points or rewards
Learn about the latest product or service offerings
I just like them (i.e., favorite brands) and like being associated with
Gain access to exclusive content or events not available to other
I want to show my support for their mission or cause
So I can share interesting content with my family or friends
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
U.S. online consumers like to interact or keep in touch with the brands they like or purchase regularly in order
to get deals, discounts, or special promotions. The second and third most popular reasons consumers
interact with brands online are to receive free samples and earn customer loyalty rewards. Aligning with
consumer expectations allows brands to better retain customers, keeping them brand loyal.
Source: North American Technographics Consumer Deep Dive: Investigating The Customer Life Cycle, Q2 2012
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BRAND ENGAGEMENT METHOD OF INTERACTION
Follow the brand on Twitter
Become a fan of the brand on Facebook
53%
Browse the brand's website
Join the brand's mailing list
Visit the brand's physical store or location
Join the brand's customer loyalty program
60%
Join the brand's email list
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Of the 54% of U.S. online consumers engaging with brands to receive deals, discounts, and special
promotions, 60% join the brand’s email list and 53% browse the brand’s website. These interaction habits
indicate the need for visibility on each of these platforms during this critical purchase consideration period.
Source: North American Technographics Consumer Deep Dive: Investigating The Customer Life Cycle, Q2 2012
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SMARTPHONE + TABLET USAGE
More than
110 MILLION
Americans own a
smartphone and
78 MILLION
Americans own a tablet
As smartphone and tablet ownership increases so does the necessity of having a mobile website for
consumers using these devices for product research and purchase.
Source: comScore, June 2012; Pew Research Center, ”25% of American Adults Own Tablet Computers”, October 2012
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MOBILE + TABLET AS RESEARCH TOOL
31% 41%
of US mobile of U.S. tablet
owners research owners
products for researched a
purchase on product in the
their phone
past month
The average revenue generated from a purchase made on a mobile phone is $70.00 and shoppers using
the iPad have a 5.2% conversion rate to e-purchase, the highest of any device. Ensuring mobile sites are
optimized for easy purchase is critical to online revenue streams.
Sources: North American Technographics Online Benchmark Survey (Part 1), Q2 2012; IBM Coremetrics Benchmark Reports:
Springmetrics, August 2012; Google/OTX Consumer Pulse Check, Q4 2010
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INCENTIVES INCREASE SALES
FIFTY-SEVEN PERCENT of US online adults say they shop more with retailers that offer free shipping than
with retailers that don’t, and 27% have BOUGHT ADDITIONAL UNPLANNED ITEMS to meet free shipping
thresholds. Offering a free shipping incentive can help increase sales + overall revenue.
Source: North American Technographics Retail Online Benchmark Recontact Survey, Q3 2012 (US)
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REASONS FOR SWITCHING RETAILERS
85%
Had a lower price
61%
Had lower shipping costs
Had a product in stock
Offered coupons and promotions
Had a better-quality product
Had additional items I intended to purchase in stock
Had product reviews
Had more product information
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
The top two reasons U.S. online consumers switch retailers are for lower prices and lower shipping costs.
This further illuminates the opportunity for increasing sales by incentivizing online purchasing.
Source: North American Technographics Retail Online Benchmark Recontact Survey, Q3 2012
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DATA CAPTURE
Data capture of information input on a consumer website allows organizations to
not only develop comprehensive prospect and customer profiling from previous
purchases but ultimately assign true ROI to marketing initiatives. Non e-
commerce sites that have on-site key performance indicators can be matched
back to in-store purchases with the use of custom databases and sales data.
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OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY
Effectively tracking, collecting and analyzing data captured
by on-site widgets can reveal business-changing insights.
Intelligent analytics can uncover purchase behavior,
including trends in product category searches and spikes
in particular SKU searches based on the data consumers
input into these data captures.
Using historical data, past trends and predictive analytics
can determine future demand, ultimately leading to
OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY.
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LIKE WHAT YOU SEE? WANT TO SEE MORE?
This is just the beginning of what we can tap into, imagine what we could do with the data you have internally…
At Levelwing, we specialize in interpreting your data and providing you with applications (and not just graphs) that
can impact your MARKETING, MERCHANDISING, INVENTORY or even TALENT RECRUITMENT. We help companies
utilize data to OPERATE WITH GREATER CLARITY + PROFITABILITY.
Bottom line, we move your business forward by helping you make sense of your data so that you can ACHIEVE
WHAT COULD BE.
For additional information, please contact:
CHAD ETHRIDGE LUKE FROST
Business Analyst Business Analyst
cethridge@levelwing.com lfrost@levelwing.com
1+843.628.5887 1+843.647.7314
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WE ARE LEVELWING
GLOBAL REACH We currently serve clients throughout North
America, Europe, China and Japan
UNIQUE APPROACH Levelwing is the leader in business
intelligence and marketing solutions with data mining + analytics at
the core
FULLY INTEGRATED We employ a matrix organization of marketers,
analytics design experts, statisticians, researchers and creatives
MEASURED SUCCESS Levelwing has experienced 10 consecutive
years of growth with industry leading client satisfaction results
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OUR BELIEFS
The Right Data Changes Everything
Marketing Budgets Should Be Smaller, Not Larger
Accountability is Essential
Success Should Pay For Itself
Leverage Existing Demand First
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SOME OF OUR PARTNERS
“Some of the most innovative and strategic minds in the industry” - Novartis
“Some of the most sophisticated things I’ve seen being done with analytics and ROI measurement” - Adobe