Commentary
Women Shoppers Want to Shop in Stores, but Open to Mobile Deals While There
- by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, April 18, 2013
Much of mobile shopping for women appears to involve traveling to a store to shop.
In the no-kidding department of research, a new study found that even though more than half (53%) of women have up to five shopping apps on their smartphones, most (76%) prefer to shop for clothes and shoes in a retail store rather than through an app.
While hardly a surprise, the same study also contains some insights for how marketers and retailers can engage with female shoppers on location.
There are some obvious areas where mobile can’t compete with what women want in stores. For example, the study by ResearchNow looked at the apparel shopping behaviors and preferences of 1,000 smartphone-owning women shoppers and found what they like about in-store shopping:
- 92% -- See and touch clothes and shoes
- 90% -- Try on clothes for fit
- 72% -- Explore and discover new styles
What they don’t like about in-store shopping:
- 84% -- Crowds
- 70% -- Transportation and parking
- 45% -- Interacting with sales people
- 41% - Trying to find their size
Mobile interaction can deal with at least the last two of those issues, by automating some interactions and providing real-time inventory information.
Women shoppers also are interactive while in the store, based on the ResearchNow study, which was commissioned by mobile company Swirl.
While in-store, they seek information from the following sources:
- 37%-- Family and friends shopping with them
- 21% -- Shopping and lifestyle apps and websites
- 15% -- In-store sales associates
- 14% -- Family and friends not with them
- 9% -- Retailer’s branded mobile app or website
The opportunity for retailers and mobile marketers is that women shoppers will act based on incentives. For example, while a third of them love it when reminded of in-store sales by a sales associate, a majority (58%) said they would be “thrilled” if they received a personalized offer on their smartphone while in the store.
The study also found that while 17% of women shoppers would not share their location, most would, based on the following incentives:
- 83% -- $15 in-store credit
- 47% -- $5 in-store credit
- 20% -- $1 in store credit
In-aisle, mobile engagement in the form of tangible value may rule the day.
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Save the date: The MediaPost mCommerce Summit, June 16-19, in Kohler, WI. The agenda.
Chuck Martin is Editor of the AI & IoT Daily at MediaPost and writes the daily Connected Thinking column. He is a NY Times Business bestselling author and his latest book is “Digital Transformation 3.0” (The New Business-to-Consumer Connections of The Internet of Things.) He is CEO of Net Future Institute and a frequent keynote speaker internationally. Follow him on Twitter @chuckmartin and contact him at Chuck@MediaPost.com.
In-aisle mobile engagement I think will continue to grow. In the future we will see a lot more apps and services combining their things-to-do list, with their things I want list and their things they need-to-do list.
Because women are so good at multi-tasking their lists only get bigger. I thing podcasting about strategies to get them want they can't afford or don't have the time to do will grow tremendously in the near future.
My wife does so many things for our family in just one trip, it's amazing.
I am lucky to have such a good wife.
Sounds like a lot of lists, Darrell or, as you point out, perhaps a better aggregation of all the various lists. And congrats on your good fortune!
You have not mentioned 1. Women like as in like to shop and shopping is an activity for women to do together, too. 2. Being seen in the same thing another woman is wearing at the same place is not cool so sharing bargains can be a big no no. 3. Did I mention shopping as an activity ? as a sport ? 4. Could go for groceries too because who wants someone to pick out your bananas ?
Thanks for the additional insights, Paula.
Hi Chuck,
It's a fascinating post. It's unclear to me what 'no-kidding department of research' you're referring to. Is that from the ResearchNow study?
As in no-kidding that the preference was to shop in-store, Sarah, which was no big surprise. The phrase was not form the study.
Could you please name the source of this study?
As mentioned in the column, the study was conducted by ResearchNow. There's a direct link to it at the end of the sentence stating who commissioned it. The graf starts: "Women shoppers also." Hope this helps.
Missed that! Thanks! :)
The magic of in-store shopping is in discovery and the inspiration one finds in store: I think mobile can help with this too, for instance I'd love it if a retailer pushed a text about a brand I like while I'm in the store, assisting me in exploring and discovering...
Hi Chuck,
Thanks for the clarification, I understood what you were saying with the "no-kidding" phrase which I loved. I just wasn't sure if it was the same research done by ResearchNow or something different.
Again, it's an important post showing mobile isn't a one-dimensional issue and consumers are adopting technologies to suit their own buying habits. I love it when things don't fit neatly into a box.
Whew, thought I had missed the mark with the 'no-kidding' phrase, thanks for that, Sarah. All the research was done by ResearchNow, commissioned by Swirl (there's a link to the entire study within the column, if interested.)
Great research, it does portray the rate at which indoor positioning is moving forward. There is a great article on 6 companies competing at a high level in mobile marketing indoors: http://streetfightmag.com/2013/01/29/6-indoor-navigation-platforms-for-retailers/
Right Anna, indoor marketing is poised to be a very big deal, indeed.