• More than half (54%) of US consumers prefer to shop in store than anywhere else 
  • Mobile phones (21%) and laptops (18%) trailing by comparison 
  • The Emarsys Performance Series explores how marketers can optimize omnichannel marketing to meet shoppers where they want to be met 

Indianapolis, US — Despite worries about the future of in-store shopping, more than half of all US consumers would rather shop in-store than by any other method. That’s according to new research from customer engagement specialist Emarsys. 

The study of 2,000 US consumers found that 54% prefer bricks-and-mortar retail to any other channel, with more than twice as many preferring it to shopping via a mobile phone (21%) or via laptops/computers (18%). With other hardware amounting to just 2% of sales, the research suggests that the main ‘threats’ to physical retail have not made up meaningful ground over the course of the pandemic. 

However, huge value remains in digital channels. Two in five (39%) “couldn’t live without online shopping”, while younger audiences push the boundaries further: 30% have made purchases on TikTok, while one in ten use a smart speaker. 

On top of this, time spent across all channels is fleeting. With consumers shopping for an average of 2 hours per week, retailers need to reach customers where they want to shop – be that in store or elsewhere.  

This is clearly reflected by the change in consumer preferences across different industries:  

  • In food, for example, despite the rise of online groceries, consumers are still four times more likely to prefer buy in-person (38%) than online (9%).  
  • For travel purchases, by contrast, consumers prefer to shop online — 23%, compared to 5% in-store. 
  • And in fashion, 21% prefer to shop online – while an almost identical 20% prefer the in-store experience. 

“Rather than ‘taking down’ physical stores, huge investments in ecommerce over the past two years have empowered customers to pursue their perfect shopping experience,” commented Meghann York, Global Head of Product Marketing, Marketing Solutions, Emarsys. “What’s telling about this data is that, while shoppers have their preferences, they also switch between a huge variety of channels as they need – so brands can’t skimp on preferred channels at the expense of smaller ones.” 

“To deliver a consistent and engaging experience, retailers must treat digital and physical retail as branches of the same strategy. Their marketers need to centralize data from every channel to meaningfully understand their customers as individuals. That’s the key to delivering campaigns that really mean something to shoppers on a one-to-one level, and that stay with them across channels.” 

To find out about how to maximise your marketing strategies, overcome siloed tech stacks and optimize omnichannel, watch the Emarsys Performance Series webinar here where Emarsys Experts set the stage for omnichannel marketing: https://emarsys.com/learn/webinars/performance-series-2-episode-1-emea-amer-setting-the-stage-for-omnichannel-marketing/.