Millennials Expect Quick Response at Retail When Phone Searches Fall Short, Says Report
Millennials welcome in-store interactions with sales staff (56 percent) more than Generation X and baby boomer shoppers, said a Thursday National Retail Federation white paper on shopping preferences of baby boomers, Generation X, millennials and Gen Z consumers. But the report said millennials also tend to be more annoyed (42 percent) and less welcoming (40 percent) of interactions with store associates than other age groups.
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NRF said the incongruity stems from millennials being used to searching on their smartphones to find “exactly what they’re looking for”; when they can’t, “that’s when they seek out in-store help, expecting the sales associate to solve their issue quickly.” Retailers need to train store associates to handle customer questions efficiently, NRF said.
On the in-store experience, more than half of both Gen Zers and millennials were mostly positive about the retail environment, while Gen X (40 percent) and baby boomers (27 percent) were most likely to find the retail environment less inviting, said NRF, attributing findings to shoppers’ comfort level with store design and technology. As stores continue to modernize with simpler store layouts, experiential offerings and interactive technology, “those who are more comfortable with technology will likely find the store more inviting,” it said.
Retailers need to “step up their social media game,” said NRF, noting 98 percent of retail executives agree engaging with shoppers on social media is important to building relationships. Social media allows brands to engage in two-way conversations with customers, it noted. Social media creates a form of trust for younger generations, and retailers that don’t engage will seem less trustworthy, making it harder to secure new and repeat customers. Baby boomers, it said, learn about promotions through social media channels more than any other group.
On the need for personalization, NRF said millennials (63 percent) are willing to pay more for a product to have a more-personal shopping experience vs. 42 percent of all shoppers. Personalization appears to be important to consumers, but technology used to improve personalization has made shoppers uncomfortable, it said. Tech such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence “may not be the magic bullet retailers hoped for,” said the trade group.
NRF gave the example of a shoe retailer that used VR headsets to show children in Peru receiving boxes of donated shoes, but it said widescale adoption didn’t follow. Some 80 percent of retailers believe emerging technologies will boost in-store sales, “but consumers seem more skeptical.” Just half of millennials said they would be more likely to go into a store with similar technology, and fewer than 40 percent of Gen Z would be inclined, it said.
The lack of interest could be due to Gen Z’s built-in comfort level with technology. Gen Z is already comfortable using technology for ordering, it said, citing a Sephora mobile app that lets customers “try on” makeup without going into a store. Personalization may require more one-on-one human interaction, rather than using technology to act as the personalization tool, it said.
Though retailers should continue to integrate technological tools into their stores, “they may be wise to focus more on improving the everyday customer experiences,” such as customer service and buy online, pick up in store, it said.