With the pandemic losing its effects, the concept of multi-channel shopping became the center of shopping trends.
Google also carried out research to support the industry in this area. The Multi-Channel Retail Survey, conducted by evaluating 137 retailers from 8 countries including Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Turkey, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland; It was carried out to understand how consumers shop and what is important to them when shopping in stores and online channels.
Within the scope of the research, omnichannel customer experience was examined with a mobile-first approach and evaluated online, order fulfillment, customer service and in-store experiences, including purchase and returns.
We will continue to bring our users to the right information.
Google Turkey Retail and Technology Industry Leader Alpagut Çilingir He made the following statements about the research: “For the last few years, the wind of transformation that the whole world is in has also transformed consumer habits. First of all, while witnessing the rapid rise of e-commerce with the pandemic, we now observe that multi-channel shopping is on the rise.
That’s why, as Google, we wanted to make an important research by adding a new contribution to the Turkish economy and retail ecosystem. We conducted the first of this research in Turkey in 2019, in which we analyzed the expectations of the consumers in the multi-channel purchasing journey in the world and how well the retailers in different countries meet these expectations.
The transformation between our two studies is quite significant. While the pre-pandemic store and online experiences were much more disconnected from each other, Turkish brands started to offer their consumer experience on online and offline channels with the pandemic. Hoping that the research we have carried out will benefit the industry, we will continue to work to bring our users together with the right information.”
Consumers Start Their Shopping Journey Online
Omnichannel shopping brings together the best retail and online products to help consumers make better purchasing decisions, which is why 62 percent of shoppers choose omnichannel. The research shows that 91 percent of the consumers in Turkey do their research online before shopping in the store; He starts his shopping journey online.
Again, according to the results of the research, consumers explain why they prefer shopping through a certain channel with the following answers: Consumers who prefer to buy online answered that I can read product reviews (79 percent), I can be more flexible about my payment method, it is very easy to choose and buy (78 percent). Shop-only consumers responded that it’s easier to browse and select products (87 percent), and I can see and touch things before buying (79 percent).
Users pay attention to businesses’ Google profiles
The more preferred (62%) omnichannel customer experience also has some key elements. 68% of shoppers want to see the availability of the product they are looking for on retailers’ websites. 42% of respondents think it is very important to have up-to-date stock information on the website. Consumers also want to make sure their Google profiles are correct and match the information on the website.
Turkey continues to grow in multi-channel shopping
Although the criteria of the Multi-Channel Retail Survey, the first of which was held in 2019, were tightened this year, Turkey increased its scores by growing compared to 2019. In particular, it succeeded to exceed European standards in terms of post-order communication, promotion of online channels in the store, and free delivery & returns.
All retailers surveyed in Turkey within the scope of the research sent order confirmations promptly and consistent with the chosen one. While 36% of retailers in Turkey got full points in promoting their online services, 43 percent got half points.
86 percent of retailers offered some form of free delivery options, while 71 percent offered free and easy returns. In addition, Turkey has succeeded in coming to the fore in some sectors in the areas of in-store stock control, e-invoices and their use in different channels.
According to the results of the research, consumers demand that the retail sector in Turkey focus more on certain issues. Among these are the pick-up service from the store, telephone support, and multi-channel gift vouchers, while proactively sharing information such as product, stock, delivery, and returns with the consumer while they are at the discovery and decision stage before the purchasing experience also draws attention as the areas that the consumer wants to focus on. .