White Paper
Showrooming Uncovers a New
World of Retail Opportunities
The Rise of High-Tech Shopping
Figure 3
Retailers want to keep consumers in their stores, and consumers are interested in getting
the best possible price. Enter showrooming: the practice of consumers using their mobile
devices within a physical store to search for the most competitive purchase price.
20% of consumers
currently participate in
showrooming, and the
practice is expected to
grow substantially.
In October 2012, Aprimo and an independent consumer research firm conducted a
research study of 2,025 US shoppers over the age of 18. The purpose? Determining how
many consumers participated in showrooming, how many planned to begin or to continue
the practice in the future, and what that means for retailers.
Consumer electronics
(e.g. digital cameras, TVs)
Grocery
(e.g. food, diapers, grooming)
Apparel, accessories,
footwear
Housewares/small appliances
(e.g. vacuum cleaners, ...)
39%
37%
33%
31%
30%
Movie/event tickets
27%
Video games
A Look at the Numbers
Home improvement
(e.g. lumber, tools)
Sporting goods
(e.g. equipment)
Music/videos
(including digital)
Furniture
(including mattresses)
23%
20%
19%
18%
17%
Toys
Large appliances
(e.g. dishwashers)
14%
14%
25%
Office products
Cars or auto parts
(including tires)
25%
Baby care (e.g. strollers,
feeding bottles)
Computers (including tablets
and peripherals)
24%
Other
Books (including eBooks)
Today’s customers are in control of their shopping experience, and they will use whatever
tool is available to search for the most competitive offer (see Figure 1). And consumers
with Smartphones are even more likely to research product prices while shopping.
Figure 4
Consumers research prices on their mobile devices for many
categories
Consumers who research prices on mobile devices find it easy
It is easy to research prices online
in a physical store
47%
I type the name of the product in
a search engine when researching
40%
I often research prices online when
I am shopping in a physical store
38%
I find it easiest to scan a barcode
or other image to compare prices
33%
The internet connectivity in stores is
often bad so I cannot research prices
as much as I’d like to
11%
9%
It is difficult to research prices
online in a physical store
16%
6%
In fact, 96% of Smartphone users say they intend to begin – or continue – using their
mobile devices to research and compare prices in the future (see Figure 2).
Figure 5
Consumers Are in Control
No matter what they’re shopping for, consumers are in control of the brand experience.
From electronics to infant care products, consumers conduct price comparison research
on their mobile devices across a wide and diverse range of categories (see Figure 3).
I purchased the product/brand
I was researching in the store
where I was shopping
Higher than
in a store
Our research study indicates that in-store shoppers are just as likely to showroom lower
price point items (e.g., groceries, books, and office supplies) as they are to showroom high
price point items (e.g., cars, computers, and furniture).
8%
Of those showroomers who decided – based on in-store research – to make a purchase
elsewhere, they found the determinant research was easy (see Figure 4), and they were
typically successful finding lower prices elsewhere (see Figure 5).
Lower than
in a store
55%
Same as in
the store
37%
18%
I purchased the product/brand
I was researching later at
another store
18%
I purchased the product/brand
online from another website
15%
9%
Price matches and personalized offers are opportunities
TO retain shoppers
A price match for the item
57%
A personalized coupon to purchase
at that time in the store
36%
Loyalty points for purchasing from
the retailer
30%
Better customer service in the store
The opportunity to have the item
shipped to my home directly
A more generous return policy
29%
23%
19%
Consumers with smartphones often research prices while shopping
Population with smartphones
Shoppers (within last 6 months)
Price shoppers
Not sure
1%
Non-buyers
Other
Smartphone
owners
54%
46%
(including no-device
consumers)
15%
Seize the Opportunities, Retailers!
Non“Showroomers” “Showroomers”
Recent buyers
47%
52%
Many consumers say they will use their phones more to research prices in the future
Future “showrooming” intention
Less
4%
Intent among men 18-34
Less
4%
More
59%
Less
2%
31%
More
About the same
About the same
Intent among women 18-34
More
37%
49%
So what does this mean for retailers?
In short, opportunities abound (see Figure 6).
As our digital landscape expands, so does the opportunity to let each individual customer
control his or her retail experience. Retailers must shift their focus from product-centric
to customer-centric strategies by:
85%
Figure 2
40%
I purchased the product/brand
online from the website of the
retailer where I was shopping
I did not purchase the product
Figure 1
Figure 6
Switching retailers or channels is common after researching
prices on mobile devices
47%
About the same
>>
>>
>>
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Connecting all data to better understand their customers
Analyzing shopper behavior both online and offline
Optimizing customer relationships at every touchpoint
Delivering relevant, timely, and personalized messaging
With a sophisticated Integrated Marketing Management (IMM) solution that supports
a customer-centric experience, the risk of consumer flight based exclusively on
price-matching is greatly mitigated.
Visit www.aprimo.com/retail to learn more.
Many consumers who
indicated they didn’t
currently showroom
were not opposed to
the practice. Instead,
they either didn’t think
about their devices
being used for this
purpose or didn’t
realize this type of
activity was possible.
67%
NOTE: This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Aprimo from October 16-18, 2012 among 2,025 adults, ages 18 and older.
This online survey is not based on a probability sample and, therefore, no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
The growing trend of showrooming
One-Third of customers leave
and purchase from a competitor.
Tips for today’s retailers:
Engage Consumers
A high percentage of consumers
welcome price matches and
personalized offers like these:
57 % 23 % 29 % 30 % 36 %
Price Matching
Personalized coupon to purchase
Loyalty points from the retailer
Better customer service in the store
Item shipped to my home directly
Respondents were able to select more than one option.
The survey, fielded by Harris Interactive on behalf of
Aprimo, surveyed 2,025 online adults in the U.S. in
October 2012.
One in five consumers are now
“showrooming” — the practice of visiting
Challenges
Challenges with today’s consumers
Over
50 %
with a
smartphone
research
prices
online
while in
a store
1 in 3
who research prices
leave & purchase
from a competitor
96 %
of smartphone owners
say they plan
to"showroom" in
the future
• 18% Purchased the product they
were researching at another store
• 15% Purchased the product
they were researching from
a different website
retail stores to try products, but then checking a mobile device
for the best price online.
November 2012 research by Aprimo®, a Teradata company, in collaboration
with Forrester Research.
Customer
Centric
Marketing
Understand your customers
1by connecting all your data
Analyze shopping behavior
2online & offline
Optimize customer relationships
3at every touchpoint
relevant, timely &
personalized messaging
4Deliver
www.aprimo.com
About Aprimo
organization, letting companies balance
creativity with a data-driven approach
and simplify the complexity of a rapidly
changing marketing environment.
Aprimo is a leading provider of
software and services that advance
the productivity and performance
of marketing organizations. We
enable marketers to engage, lead and
perform by empowering conversations
on new engagement channels,
enhancing internal collaboration, and
improving marketing performance
and accountability. Aprimo’s modular
and on demand Integrated Marketing
Management (IMM) solutions provide a
global, integrated marketing platform
that can be broadly adopted across an
Hundreds of thousands of marketers trust
Aprimo to revolutionize their marketing,
including over one third of Fortune
100 companies and nearly one quarter
of Global 100 companies. A Teradata
company, Aprimo is headquartered in
Indianapolis, IN, with offices worldwide.
For more information, call 1.317.814.6465
or visit www.aprimo.com.
Copyright © 2013 by Teradata Corporation
All Rights Reserved. Produced in U.S.A.
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is the world’s leading analytic
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on integrated data warehousing,
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