Five online consumer behaviors and shopping trends

So what new behavior and shopping trends have emerged as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic?

A recent research study by Linnworks identified five significant ecommerce trends that help drive online consumer behavior. And while these trends materialize at various points in the customer buying journey, they all have one constituent in common — convenience.

The key to success in ecommerce is understanding these new trends and adopting business strategies to meet the current expectations of a convenient buying journey.

1. Convenience is a top priority.

According to Linnworks’ study, 76% of consumers value convenience as one of their top priorities. (And 78% of consumers now value convenience more than they did before COVID restrictions.)

One of the primary things consumers find convenient is the ability to browse an online store and check out as a guest. In addition, the fewer forms consumers have to complete — the more convenient and better they find their overall customer buying journey (and the more likely they are to return).

2. Easy access across all devices

81% of online shoppers seek a seamless transfer between devices throughout a buying journey. In fact, the expectation is now that consumers can begin a buying journey on one device, such as a desktop, and end on another, like their mobile device — without interruption.

This cross-device experience is also expected to include checkouts with personal details already completed on whichever device customers finalize their buying journey (even if they filled in these details on a different device).

3. Access to omnichannel shopping

With access to multiple technology options, consumers are engaged in an ‘always-on’ shopping experience. 70% of consumers now shop while multitasking (for example, while scrolling social media platforms). And they’ve come to expect that their favorite brands are on the same channels where they spend the majority of their time.

This maximizes convenience by ensuring they never have to leave their favorite and trusted platforms during the buying process. For retailers, this includes implementing an omnichannel model by focusing on various marketplaces where consumers spend their time and, more specifically, selling on social channels such as Facebook and Instagram.

4. Effortless payment

When retailers are considering tips to keep up with consumer expectations and behaviors, it’s essential to focus on every aspect of the customer experience.

Consumers seek convenience throughout the entire buying journey. As as part of that end-to-end buying convenience, they look to discover ecommerce online shops that have easy-to-setup payment gateways that also accept popular payment methods — such as “buy now, pay later.”

The simplicity of payment options drives 89% of consumers to make purchasing decisions more quickly. And 84% of consumers purchase larger ticket items with offered effortless and flexible payment options.

5. Fast and reliable delivery

95% of consumers feel that fast delivery options are a must-have factor when shopping online. That’s why ShipBob offers fast 2-day shipping and has a dispersed network of logistics centers to split inventory across to help reduce shipping costs, speed up delivery times, and meet customer expectations.

Shipping transparency is also highly expected of online retailers. In fact, 72% of consumers have abandoned their purchases over a lack of shipping transparency on ecommerce sites.