It’s hardly a surprise that millennials are making their mark as a significant number of online shoppers. It is said that almost 72% millennials research their options online before they go to a store. Online shopping, statistics show that 68% of millennials want a seamless experience when they shop online. Its important for online retailers to tap in on the millennials’ buying power who make up a vast majority of online shoppers. All said and done, here’s what retailers need to understand about the online shopping habits of millennials.
Price is Prime:
We all know that millennials earn well and wish to indulge themselves too. But even for them, a good price goes a long way. Research indicates that millennials care for a good price over any other factor when they make online purchases. Even when it comes to a unique one of a kind product, most millennials will go elsewhere for a better price before they decide to click on the purchase button.
A two-way shopping experience:
The participative approach and engaging the customers goes beyond just selling when it comes to millennials. They expect the entire online shopping experience to be more engaging. Online brands should make Millennials feel that they are a part of something fashionable and trendy. Most millennials are comfortable if others know they are associated with a prestigious store twice as often as Baby Boomers. Give them bonus points to share your products, referral codes and the like to bring them back to your store.
Offer Good Loyalty programs:
It is a myth that millennials aren’t the most loyal customers. Recent studies indicate that 95 percent of millennials would love their online brands to make an effort to reach out and send them material. It could be anything from coupons and discount notices. For millennials, like your average person, if they are treated well chances are they will keep coming back. Mostly they search for the offers on their favourite brand online; you will find many sites like CouponX, Retailmenot, Shoppirate, and etc which provide them Varity of coupons and discounts. However, All Millennials love personalized, promotions and discounts targeted towards them. In order to truly capture them, make this part of your marketing efforts!
Love for social media promoted products:
It is a known fact that millennials love social media. Online retailers can capitalize on it from a marketing perspective. With Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, etc — millennials find social media a playground for online retailers to interact with them. It is noted that they are more interested in the marketing outreach from social media and tend to check out their favorite brand’s pages to view products, deals and other news pertaining to the brand. Be sure to keep all your accounts active throughout the day to remain in touch with your customers.
Smartphone Savvy Shoppers:
It is best for retailers to have a site which is mobile responsive. All Millennials value a good experience from the time of arrival to your site until the time they leave. The current generation is tech-savvy generation with a low attention span, so retailers should have good enough sites and apps to hold the attention of their customers. Even when shopping brick and mortar style, many Millennials still use their phones for comparison of prices, read reviews, and may choose to purchase via mobile. Infact many companies are using Location-based marketing strategies to target the users“on the go” with IP-based geolocation technology which help them in creating marketing campaigns that are targeted, relatable, and personalized, thereby attracting more customers and increasing revenues.
Seamless Experience
To reflect their customer demand, retailers should customize their offerings across channels in the ways Millennials want, which means better, faster, more memorable service. Whenever millennials shop online via an app or website, they look for a seamless experience where everything is integrated and there is transparency with no hidden costs. A hassle-free online shopping experience is what millennials expect.
Gift cards are loved
Millennials are sensitive to cyber security issues and 64 % of millennials find gift cards safer to use online than any other digital payment method. More than a whopping 66 % believe that gift cards limit identity fraud. Retailers can attract sensitive buyers who are looking for alternatives with gift cards and various paying options.