Survey: Majority of shoppers visit multiple retailers, compare prices
The large majority of shoppers are “uncommitted” – marking a big opportunity for retailers to attract new customers.
That’s according to a new report from cash back app Upside, which revealed that nearly 80% of retail customers are uncommitted, meaning they shop across different locations and formats and prioritizing their own needs over brand loyalty. On average, consumers surveyed by Upside said they visit three grocery stores, five restaurants, and two gas stations per month.
When asked how frequently they compare prices across businesses, 39% of in-person and 48% of online grocery shoppers “often” or “always” do so, along with 38% of restaurant guests who dine in and 50% of those who often food for takeout. Nearly half (46%) of fuel customers “often” or “always” compare prices at the pump, while 29% said they do it “sometimes.”
“Uncommitted shoppers are rational and they are everywhere — they put their own needs before a brand's, across all the demographic groups, income brackets and retail categories we analyzed," said Dr. Thomas Weinandy, senior research economist at Upside. "While this lack of commitment certainly isn't a new phenomenon, it's important because it's growing and because there are clear patterns emerging regarding how to win them."
Online resources are a key tool for uncommitted shoppers. More than two-thirds (67%) of restaurant customers and more than half (54%) of grocery shoppers use social media, search engines, online ads and online reviews to discover new products/brands. Forty-four percent of fuel customers report doing so as well.
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Upside says that the large number of shoppers who are not brand loyal presents an opportunity for chains to attract consumers. In grocery, roughly half of all respondents (committed and uncommitted customers) said they decide where to shop less than two hours before they actually go. In the restaurant category, 66% of respondents decide where to dine less than two hours before their meal. In fuel, 77% of respondents decide where to fill up less than two hours before they do so.
Loyalty, rewards and membership programs are great ways of attracting uncommitted shoppers, according to Upside. Sixty percent of in-person grocery shoppers, 61% of in-person restaurant diners, and 59% of all fuel customers said they would be willing to change where they decide to shop based on these programs. Upside added that according to its survey, more than 40% of uncommitted customers in a given month won’t return to a store in the next year without a loyalty or cash back program to entice them.
Upside says that to win uncommitted customers over the long term, retailers must prioritize the conversion from the first to second visit, and continuously win the customer back for each successive visit to eventually create a regular customer.
“Building a habit with your uncommitted customers – getting them to visit just once more per month – could represent a transformational increase in monthly revenue,” said Upside. “Interventions like loyalty programming or a digital marketplace accelerate habit formation to make sure the customers that walk through your doors stay your customers for the long haul.”
