JDA SOFTWARE GROUP INC "The report suggests that Swedes in general are ready to embrace the advantages of online shopping," Johan Reventberg, vice president of Sales, Northern Europe, said. "This is true not only for the fashion and electronics industries, but for all types of goods. While this surely presents interesting opportunities for retailers, the report also shows that customers are becoming less tolerant to issues that may appear during the buying and fulfillment processes. In other words, Swedish online retailers who are able to master the customer expectations profitably, are likely to gain significant market share at the cost of retailers that are slower to act on the new opportunities."
Willingness to shop online increases while tolerance for delivery issues decreases
The survey also shows that the majority of Swedes online (71%) say that they would use home delivery if offered by supermarkets, followed by Click & Collect (64%) and Drive (42%) services.
"The overall trend demonstrated here is that Swedish adults are ready and willing to adopt a variety of delivery options," Johan Reventberg said. "For Swedish retailers, the key takeaway is that to meet this demand, they will need to provide more choices to the customers than they do today."
Delivery issues doubles in Sweden
In the last 12 months, 38% of Swedes have experienced problems with their online shopping, which is a dramatic increase from last year's figure of 17%*. Part of the problem is likely to depend on the growing popularity of online shopping itself, as more transactions naturally increase the risk of something going wrong. However, as online shopping become more readily available, the study shows that customers also raise their expectations around the buying and receiving processes when compared to previous years.
"At a time when consumers are doing increasing amounts of shopping online, the survey reveals that they are also becoming less tolerant of service issues," Johan Reventberg said. "Indeed, 73% of respondents said that as a result of a poor online shopping experience they would be likely to switch to an alternative retailer when next shopping for products online." (tweet this)
Returns experience crucial for majority of customers (69%)
The survey suggests that Swedish adults online favour online retailers who make it easy to manage returns. This applies to potential customers as well as existing customers. This is especially true in Sweden where 69% of Swedes say that the ease of returns experience is a factor when choosing retailer. The same figure in the UK is 63%. Of those who have ever shopped online, the most common frustrations, and subsequently, issues to overcome for Swedish retailers were:
- Having to pay for returns (37%)
- Difficulty in finding returns information (17%)
- Having to return items by post or by courier (12%)
The importance of establishing streamlined returns processes become even more evident in the light of the way many Swedes shop online. An example from the clothing industry show that every fourth (24%) Swede often order two or more items of the same size or colour when shopping online, indicating that they have pre-determined to return the one with the colour that they like the least or the one that do not fit very well.
"Retailers need to move away from treating returns as simply a cost-recovery exercise, instead they need to adapt their processes to take into account costumers' ever-changing buying habits. Today, it is common for customers to buy multiple items online with the intention of sending some back. The research clearly shows the returns experience is having an increasing bearing on who customers shop with online," said Niklas Hedin, CEO of Centiro. "Retailers should look at returns as a further opportunity to enhance the customer experience. In the same way that today's omni-channel environment is allowing consumers to buy items where and when they want, they would like the same flexibility when it comes to returns. This could be returning goods to a store or specifying a location and/or time for a courier pick up. By capturing this information, retailers can start to personalise the returns experience and create more value for the consumer and themselves."
Overall, 59% of Swedes who have ever bought clothes online said they had returned at least one item during the last twelve months, which is slightly higher than the UK figure of 55%.
Convenience catching up on costs as the most important factor for Swedish online shoppers
While much of the talk from retailers surrounding home deliveries has focused on the importance of rapid or same-day delivery, the research revealed that cost (42%) and convenience (30%) remain most important to those who had shopped online, rather than speed (13%) (tweet this). Furthermore, nearly a third of respondents (32%) who have made an online purchase in the last 12 months said that in this time they had chosen to shop with a retailer that offered multiple delivery options over one that only offered one option. In fact, nearly a third (30%) of Swedes said they would be likely to pick a retailer specifically on the basis they can offer a particular slot for delivery (at an extra cost), over one which offers just free delivery.
"As online retail continues to grow, so too have consumers' expectations. What they want is an 'anywhere, anytime' fulfillment service that is convenient and reliable. No longer are consumers prepared to wait at home for a courier to deliver a parcel, or wait days before they can visit a store to collect their goods. Today's consumer is not only dictating how and when they would like to receive goods, but reserving the right to make adjustments up until the last minute," saidJohan Reventberg. "It is clear that consumers will vote with their feet if their expectations aren't met. For instance, the research shows that more than half (59%) of those online shoppers who experienced problems at peak times in the last 12 months, such as Black Friday and Christmas, said they would be unlikely to shop with the same retailer this year. This underlines the need for retailers to ensure customer service excellence is maintained all year round, even during testing peak times."
Click & Collect finally taking off in Sweden - with the growing pains…
A popular service for some years in the UK, Click & Collect services took off significantly in Sweden during the last 12 months. 57% of Swedes who have shopped online in the last 12 months reported using Click & Collect compared to 28% in 2014, which actually makes Sweden pass the UK in this context (49% of the UK respondents reported that they had used Click & Collect during the last twelve months). (tweet this) A similar study in Germany shows that German online shoppers are still at a similar level where Sweden was 12 months ago (23% of Germans reported using Click & Collect during the last twelve months).
"Online retail continues to be an extremely competitive battleground. The winners will be those retailers that can offer a reliable and convenient fulfillment service to consumers, rather than simply focusing on speed and price. At the same time, escalating costs and ever-increasing competition is putting pressure on retailers' already squeezed margins. Retailers must think hard about the configuration of their supply chains, and will need to become much smarter about how they use their key assets of staff, stores and inventory to fulfill customer requests in an intelligent way. Consumers have undoubtedly thrown down the gauntlet to retailers, it is now up to them to meet this challenge in a profitable manner," said Johan Reventberg.
September 2 seminar with Nelly.com
JDA and Centiro will be presenting the results of the survey at a seminar in Stockholm on September 2, 2015. At the event, visitors will also be able to take part of practical examples of how leading retailer Nelly.com works to master customer experience in a profitable way. For more information and to sign up for the seminar, please see: http://www.centiro.se/customer-pulse-report-seminarium.
September 8 seminar with DHL
JDA and Centiro will be presenting the results of the Customer Pulse Reports at a seminar in Amsterdam on September 8, 2015. At the event, attendees will hear how DHL continues to deliver on its omni-channel promises with proven best practices year after year, season after season, helping retailers to keep and grow its loyal customer base.
For more information and to sign up for the seminar, please see: http://now.jda.com/JDA-Centiro-Omni-Channel-Breakfast-Amsterdam.html
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,016 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 24th - 30th April 2015. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all Swedish adults (aged 18+). The research was commissioned by JDA and Centiro.
*In 2014, the Swedish online retail market grew by 15.5% and the forecast for 2015 is at 15.5% as well (Centre for Retail Research)
*JDA Customer Pulse Report 2014 (TNS)
Additional Resources:
- Access the full JDA/Centiro 'Customer Pulse 2015' Report here.
- Join JDA and Centiro on September 2, 2015 in Stockholm for a seminar presenting the results of the Customer Pulse 2015 report.
- Join JDA and Centiro on September 8, 2015 in Amsterdam for a seminar presenting the results of the Customer Pulse 2015 report.
Tweet This: 4 of 10 Swedes Experienced Problems with Online Orders in the Last 12 Months Says #JDAPulse survey bitly Months http://bit.ly/1UsYXUz
About JDA Software Group, Inc.
At JDA, we're fearless leaders. We're the leading provider of end-to-end, integrated retail, omni-channel and supply chain planning and execution solutions for more than 4,000 customers worldwide. Our unique solutions empower our clients to reduce costs, increase profitability and improve collaboration so they can deliver on their customer promises every time. Using JDA, you can plan to deliver. www.jda.com
About Centiro
Centiro is the leading innovator in cloud-based transportation and delivery management solutions. Centiro's products empower companies and finer supply chains in over 65 countries. The company has won several awards and accolades over the years and is ranked as one of the best places to work in Europe by Great Place to Work®.
For further information, please visit www.centiro.com.
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