The average shopper age between 16 and 24 will wait in line at a checkout for just six minutes before giving up and leaving, according to previous research by omnichannel retail experts Omnico. Among older shoppers that wait time tolerance drops to under five minutes.
New findings from Omnico reveal an even more worrying trend for High Street retailers.
One in 10 shoppers has made a purchase, via mobile, from another retailer’s website while standing in a checkout queue. Among younger age groups, that figure rises to 15%.
This mobile behaviour is all the more reason for retailers to embrace omnichannel retail in-store, says Steve Thomas, chief technology officer at Omnico. The “natural urge” is for retailers to attempt to stop shoppers from using mobile to compare prices or inventory while in-store, but that’s a losing battle and one which will reflect badly on the store with consumers.
“Some retailers try to stop it, by ignoring consumers’ desire for free wi-fi or even blocking mobile signals, but this is a short sighted view,” said Thomas (via Internet Retailing). “Yes, price is very important, but there are many other factors that encourage loyalty to a brand and omni-channel, such as convenience and quality of service.”
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Tags: mobile, omnichannel, retail trends, shopper insights, showrooming