Shopper Experience Index and what it means to your online store

There are many indexes in the market, from Stock Market indexes to Consumer Confidence Indexes which help you put the finger on the pulse of supply and demand. How about this Shopper Experience Index? How does it relate to your online store, how does it affects your supply and demand for your goods, and which particular ones are affected? To define this index, Shoppers are your new salespeople - promoting your goods, and your brand, and driving your digital marketing as they embrace your way of representation and lifestyle.

Shopper Experience Index

With Social Media, 53% of the brand's photos and videos of the lifestyle and use of the products that the brand sells are generated by customers, which influences the purchase decision of new customers. This influence reflects the brand, the usability, serviceability, warranty, customer support, and finally the shopping experience through your online store. It is important to note, that this ranges where you have to spend the marketing budget on replacing this viral phenomenon and would still feel greater friction when it comes to conversion, over the influence customers have over the same metric.

With the right online tools, 40% are most likely to purchase from an advertisement if there are shopper reviews and photos and videos of the use of the products. That's the conversion impact of this phenomenon, and how the Shopper Experience index impacts your online store.

Authenticity is your biggest asset

It has been measured that up to 21% in increased average order value has been impacted by the Shopper Experience Index when the following information is present in the likes of a Shopify store:

1. Average star ratings

2. Number of reviews

3. Details in the reviews that resonate with what the shopper is looking for

4. The date on the reviews is recent

5. Lengthy detailed reviews

6. Visuals such as photos and videos

7. Covering your Brand's business categories - sales, service, product, warranty, returns

8. Loyalty and rewarding the customer for their input

The above 8 points are a self-feeding recipe where you continually build your Brand's authenticity and experience. it requires a process, organizing how the feedback is captured, and this user-generated content (UGC) will feed Google's SEO to improve your authority on the keywords you are promoting. When you think of your marketing efforts budget hits your bottom line, a 21% boost in sales from this process can offset this budget and grow your sales to the next level.

Social Commerce and its impact

Social Commerce is the way to go when it comes to spreading the word - Instagram, Facebook, and even Twitter are all relevant Social Networks to use for your brand awareness and connecting to your social media users. Here are some recent facts that show the impact of your presence showing your authenticity in Social Commerce.

• 69% of customers were inspired by social media to make a purchase. For example, watching YouTube videos of unboxing experiences, setting up a product, servicing a product, and also brand background and experience with your company are all shared and available. Even testimonial blogs being placed on Facebook, or just imagery of the use of the products on Instagram creates a portfolio of experiences that inspire customers to make a purchase.

• Facebook and Instagram are the most influential globally when it comes to social shopping and affect consumer decisions. And between 18-24yrs of age groups, Instagram and TikTok are the most popular social media platforms that engage in selling online.

• 54% of consumers are more likely to buy a product when the post/advertisement can directly link the information of the product and its authenticity to be present alongside it.

• Lack of promotion when it comes to Loyalty and Rewards can directly impact your social commerce influence. The use of Email marketing to announce your marketing drives, promotional rewards, and engagements is key to keeping your brand active when it comes to mindshare. Don't make it a short-term engagement with the customers that promote you, make it a cultural habit to reward them.

New Normal shopping behaviors

After the pandemic, the social change in the way of acquiring your goods has permanently changed the way of selling products. The eCommerce websites such as Shopify and other platforms have introduced tools to improve the experience and reduce the friction of online purchasing. The tools range from payment gateways and digital wallets to Facebook shops, all the way to make it easy to create an online store and start selling your products. With an easy-to-use website builder, you can process credit cards in no time. However, these new methods that are within reach come with a hybrid shopping behavior that must be in place for you to succeed:

• 64% of today's shoppers are hybrid in nature: while before an advertisement would resonate with the customer and they would be inspired to shop for the item, today a hybrid shopper checks the authenticity of the brand, the product, and checks on its use using social media and reviews. This research is the introduction of the "hybrid" aspect of customer behavior to ensure that the experience expected is met.

• 30% of global respondents shop once or more per week even though the pandemic restrictions have been lifted, with some increasing their grocery deliveries to their homes, or avoiding the hassle of travel to obtain their goods.

Conclusion

Paying attention to the Shopper Experience Index will allow you to understand the new online shopping drive from consumers. Your brand has to show them, convince and inspire them to convert, and then share that experience via loyalty and rewards. This additional consumer cycle pays off, as well as keeping you more relevant on the social media platforms to help grow your brand awareness, and your consumer base and bring their feedback for your business to grow further. If you have a Shopify Store, or any other online store and would like to discuss how your store measures to the Shopper Consumer Index, feel free to reach out to us at wish@thegenielab.com