Digital-native shoppers, like Millennials and Gen Z, are redefining retail expectations, particularly at the point of sale.
With an affinity for low-touch, seamless online experiences, younger shoppers are ditching traditional payment methods, for frictionless and mobile-friendly payment and checkout options. In fact, 75% of U.S. millennials say they want more diverse payment options suited to their needs and lifestyles. What’s more is that anything too slow or unnecessarily complex during the shopping experience, particularly online, can lead to cart abandonment and lower customer retention.
For these shoppers, it’s clear that convenience is king and expectations are at an all-time high. If a retailer doesn’t meet the demand for improved checkout experiences, digital-native shoppers will move on to one that does. To stand out in today’s crowded market and keep customers coming back, alternative payment methods are quickly becoming a must-have for retailers.
When it comes to digital-native shoppers, it’s more than just understanding how their expectations have changed. These expectations are tied to emotional factors that influence buyer behavior.
In a survey, we found that millennial consumers experience a rollercoaster of emotions while shopping online. For instance, 68% of consumers get a buzz filling their carts, while 52% stress about spending. Two-thirds of all transactions are abandoned before completion and 20% of that is due to purchase worry or regret.
To smooth out the experience, retailers need to create a purchase journey that focuses on three key elements:
Joy: No one likes a boring or complex process. In fact, we found that stressful online shopping experiences cause three-quarters of millennials to abandon their carts, so make sure to create a positive browsing experience to increase conversion.
Time: People want to be freed from all the time spent checking out, entering card or personal details and managing finances so they can spend more time on what they love. We found that 28% of millennials are annoyed when they have to enter a slew of details, and a third of millennials are actually more likely to make a spontaneous purchase if the website is simple and easy.
Control: Online shopping experiences can spark uncertainty and anxiety in millennial shoppers, with nearly 40% feeling anxious they can’t afford everything in their basket and nearly half removing items when they review their basket to reduce the total cost. People want a flexible purchase experience that’s tailored to fit their lifestyle. One in five millennial shoppers feels less guilty if offered deferred payments and is more likely to complete a purchase if they can spread the cost over time.
With online shopping becoming an increasingly emotional experience, it’s important to provide a checkout experience that can offset any negative feelings during the purchase journey. A purchase journey that takes joy, time and control into account will help meet consumer demand for convenience, as well as drive conversion and loyalty.
