The synergy between physical and digital

Like Reply is passionate about the topic of synergy between online and offline consumer behaviour. While digital measurement is the first "universe" to have evolved, today you also need to include the real/physical universe. The boundaries between offline and online shopping experiences are becoming increasingly blurred, not just in terms of analysis, but also in terms of the purchasing process.

BUYING BEHAVIOUR

Based on an online survey of a sample of 500 respondents from Italy, Like Reply mapped the four most common buying behaviours: 

  • The Nostalgic Buyer is sentimental about the physical, so gathers information offline (price, location, comparison) but prefers to purchase in store; 
  • The Ninja knows exactly what they want: Christmas presents, birthday presents – this person will even buy a car or pay a deposit online; 
  • The Wannabe Ninja will opt for an in-store experience before completing their purchase online, however the sole purpose of the in-store visit is to facilitate the online conversion; 
  • The Bungee Jumper is the customer/user who, even if they perform online searches and offline checks, will always choose a digital conversion. This can be due to affordability issues, promotional opportunities, or product unavailability at the point of sale.However, in each case the common denominator is the challenge of bringing consumers and the specific seller/shop/dealer closer together. As many as 65% of customer conversions take place online, while one third of users prefer an in-store shopping experience. 

ANALYSIS

By way of evidence that the store is a significant reference point: two out of three users consider the physical store important both for direct purchases and an informative experience. When we explore the reasons why users search for information online, the survey shows that: 

  • 1 out of 4 users searches for online promotions before going to the store; 
  • 35% search for the store location and opening hours; 
  • 1 out of 5 searches for product availability, while16% seek customer feedback to gather information on the experiences of other users who post reviews to social media platforms like that of GMB cards or Facebook location pages. 

This kind of information makes it possible to create personalised projects for each type of indirect network in Italy, taking into consideration the specific nature of the product and the consumer.