Topic of the week – The Importance of Younger Consumers in the eCommerce Landscape
eCommerce has seen a huge uplift over the last few years, a large part of that coming from the pandemic. However, the influence that younger demographics have over the eCommerce landscape mustn’t be overlooked.
In 2022 it was shown that 48.9% of mobile eCommerce shoppers were aged between 18-24 in the U.S. alone. Understanding the needs of the consumer is crucial in attracting the right demographics, creating brand loyalty and finally customer retention. Statistics show that in 2022 leading customer expectations towards online shopping were as follows:
- 80% of customers want to get from inspiration to purchase as quickly as possible
- 64% wish that more brands and retailers were more innovative in using digital technology to enhance the user buying experience
- 58% would not shop with a retailer or specific brand that did not meet their expectations
As we move further into 2023, the eCommerce industry has seen new trends in consumer expectations, especially within younger demographics. Sustainability has been a prevalent topic over the last few years, with greater efforts being made by corporations to reduce their carbon emissions and use more sustainable packaging and fuel options. Having sustainable practices is now part of a brand’s identity, and has been shown to appeal more to consumers when deciding between competing products or services. Globally, 30% of online shoppers are influenced by the environmental actions of companies. Brands such as Chilly’s and SunGod focus heavily on sustainability and promote the use of reusable products, as well as becoming a Certified B Corp which conveys “a company’s high-performing sustainable business practices.”
Most people also shop from their phones now, so providing a high quality mobile optimised experience is important. Having an easy to use and fluid website leads to an overall better shopping experience. Excluding mobile approaches to site creating and optimisation, essentially neglects a huge portion of the eCommerce market and potential buyers, as has been shown that 72.9% of online eCommerce visits were generated from the use of mobile devices. This also leads on to user personalisation, which involves providing tailored shopping experiences to individual users that meet their specific tastes. This can improve brand loyalty and keep customers coming back as well as collating data to create targeted promotions and campaigns through email or social media to cover segmented audiences and their requirements. This also shows how important social media engagement is among younger demographics as they are most likely to visit eCommerce sites directly from targeted social media ads or posts that are promoting a product. This is also a good way of interacting with a customer base and creating a brand community.
These are just a few of the many consumer trends that are rising in 2023, so be sure to keep an eye on how you may be able to improve your eCommerce appeal to younger audiences throughout the rest of the year.
In Other News
An increase in cart abandonment has shown that British business could be missing out on huge profits in the last leg of the shopping experience. In the U.S. 84% of mobile shopping baskets resulted in abandonment, with 73% of computer user baskets failing to reach purchase. Some methods of reducing cart abandonment include:
- Providing a streamlined and user friendly checkout experience
- Reduce the need to manually enter payment information
- Keep the process simple and as quick as possible
Find out more ways to reduce cart abandonment in our article.
eCommerce Market Stats
See some statistics relating to this week’s topics in major eCommerce markets below.
USA
- 48.9% of mobile eCommerce shoppers are aged 18-24
- 30.5% of mobile eCommerce shoppers are aged 25-34
- Most common online purchases by device in 2022:
- Smartphone – 66%
- Laptop - 41%
- Tablet – 27%
- Most common online purchase categories in 2022:
- Clothing – 51%
- Shoes – 42%
- Bags & accessories – 33%
Germany
- 7.4% of online shoppers were aged 14-19
- 18.5% of online shoppers were aged 20-29
- Most common online purchases by device in 2022:
- Smartphone – 65%
- Laptop – 43%
- Desktop PC – 30%
- Most common online purchase categories (in million euros):
- Clothing – €19,270
- Consumer electronics - €16,444
- Computers, equipment & games - €8,213
Ireland
- 14.5% of online shoppers were aged 18-24
- 21.2% of online shoppers were aged 25-34
- 52.6% of online purchases were made on desktop PCs
- 47.4% of online purchases were made on smartphones
- Most common online purchase categories (in billion USD):
- Fashion - $1.81
- Electronics - $1.00
- Toys, hobby & DIY – $0.89
*All statistics sourced from Statista
That's all for this week...
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