National Study Finds Retailers behind on Shopper Motivation and Loyalty amid Back to School Season

Leading Promotion and Pricing Company, Market Track, Finds Fortune 100 Retailers Still on Learning Curve with Shoppers on Promotional Influences as Highest Sales Period Begins

National study finds retailers behind on shopper motivation and loyalty amid Back to School season. (Graphic: Business Wire)

CHICAGO--()--Market Track, LLC, the leading provider of promotion and pricing intelligence solutions in North America, announced today the release of an in-depth findings report from a two-part national survey of retail shoppers and Fortune 100 companies. The report indicates new consumer motivation buying trends and a disconnect in retail industry perception amid the Back to School season—historically the most important promotional period for retailers ahead of Black Friday.

The nationwide study of retail shoppers was demographically segmented to examine promotional and pricing influencers by key category and product types, across age, location, income, family and technology use. Market Track’s primary research study finds fascinating trends related to what promotional motivations drive shoppers' desires to buy, and how buying habits differ as related to various promotional advertisements offered by retailers.

Key findings include:

  • Shoppers are not loyal. 80% of shoppers surveyed said they would switch stores or brands when offered a compelling promotion. This unforeseen risk is nearly double the percentage of shoppers willing to switch than retailers expected.
  • Shoppers are constantly comparing prices. 78% actively participate in ‘showrooming’ and 76% actively participate in ‘webrooming.’
  • Shoppers are heavily influenced by promotions. 83% of those surveyed said they made an unplanned purchase based on a promotion they received, with 65% saying they made the purchase in store.
  • Shoppers are in control. They have more information at their disposal than ever before, and they are making use of all of it. Over 80% of shoppers say they utilize more than one promotional media type to make purchase decisions, with print and websites being the most frequently used promotional vehicles.

“The results of this ground-breaking study indicate a significant disconnect in retail industry perception of shopper behavior and uncovers a compelling consumer risk for stakeholders during the Back to School season and the upcoming holiday season,” said Wayne Mincey, Market Track’s CEO. “While we have known that distinct promotions have strong influence on purchase decisions, this study powerfully showcases the impact real-time access and omni-channel promotional offers have on consumer buying behavior and loyalty,” added Mincey.

Beyond the findings of concurrent use of omni-channel promotional media tools and lack of brand loyalty, the study found an abundance of new statistics related to the influence of each promotional media type, patterns associated with certain category purchases, demographic-based comparisons and causal relationships within the data.

The full findings of the study can be found in a published report by Market Track titled, “Reach & Impact: Inside the Mind of the Shopper,” available to media upon request.

About Market Track

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Market Track is the leading provider of subscription-based promotion and pricing intelligence solutions in North America. Offered via a web-based software-as-a-service platform called FeatureVision, Market Track’s solutions enable retailers and manufacturers of consumer goods to efficiently monitor and analyze causal data to maximize the value of their promotional campaigns. Customers use FeatureVision as both a competitive intelligence tool to determine how competing products and brands are being promoted, and to ensure retailer compliance with trade promotion agreements. The Company’s granular promotions data cover nearly every retail trade class, product category and media channel, measuring promotional activity during the critical 0-7 days before a consumer’s purchase decision. For more information, please visit www.markettrack.com.

Contacts

The Pollack PR Marketing Group
Stefan Pollack/Daniel Atwater
(310) 556-4443
spollack@ppmgcorp.com
datwater@ppmgcorp.com

Release Summary

Leading promotion and pricing company, Market Track, finds Fortune 100 retailers still on learning curve with shoppers on promotional influences as highest sales period begins.

Contacts

The Pollack PR Marketing Group
Stefan Pollack/Daniel Atwater
(310) 556-4443
spollack@ppmgcorp.com
datwater@ppmgcorp.com