High-worth online consumers put a big premium on having complete control over their shopping experience, according to a new survey from Google. Flexibility, convenience and speed are what wealthy individuals deem as the main benefits of shopping online, the poll found.
In the survey of 1,000 consumers, 750 were ultra-affluent, meaning they earned between $250,000 and $1 million annually. 250 of respondents earned $1 million or more each year. They were identified as millionaires. The largest share of respondents in the poll said flexibility is what they value most about online shopping. Flexibility, defined as the ability to shop whenever the consumers wanted, was cited as important by 94% of those surveyed. 93% cited convenience, meaning the ability to purchase either online for delivery or in-store pickup; while 92% cited the ability to find products quickly online.
“These are people who are all about control in every aspect of their life. They are used to having what they want, when they want it, and that translates into the shopping experience as well,” says Paulita David, vertical industry specialist at Google. Survey findings note time constraints are a key factor in the demand for flexibility and convenience, with almost 90% of the millionaires surveyed working full-time and nearly 60% of the ultra-affluent.
The poll challenges perceptions some luxury brand marketers and retailers have about the habits of their wealthiest customers, according to John McAteer, industry director, retail, at Google. McAteer notes that luxury brands have long questioned whether moving into e-commerce will cheapen their brands.
“Clearly the survey spells out that consumers want to be able to purchase online or shop online and then purchase in the store,” he says. McAteer adds that, with the advent of zoom, 360-degree product rotation and other imaging applications, technology is now in place to deliver product display on web sites that’s on par with the brand image cultivated by luxury brands and retailers.
He also notes that while many luxury brands and merchants are still investing more in offline marketing such as magazine advertising than in online media, the survey found that online advertising is having a bigger impact on wealthy consumers. 75% of millionaires and 68% of the ultra-affluent say online advertising influenced their most recent purchase, versus only 70% of millionaires and 66% of ultra-affluent consumers saying magazine advertising had done so.
“Clearly, with the economic downturn we are in, it’s important that these brands put their dollars where their customers are. Increasingly, that's online and not reading a magazine,” he says.
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