How to help the augmented consumer through the purchase process? (episode 1 of 3)

In this first episode of our series, we dive into the world of the "augmented" consumer and explore how technology has revolutionized their behaviors and expectations. With the rise of smartphones, voice assistants, and tech giants like the GAFAM, consumer habits and interactions have been profoundly transformed.

This article examines how these new technologies influence commerce, redefine the standards of customer experience, and why businesses must adapt to remain relevant in this digital age. Welcome to the world of the connected consumer, where the future is already unfolding.

So who is this so-called “augmented” consumer?

Our world has entered a new phase: one in which technology has become an extension of human thought, where humans have a smartphone or voice assistant at their disposal to use for the smallest question or the slightest piece of information.

WILL THE AUGMENTED HUMAN BE THE NORM OF THE FUTURE?

Technology has effectively created new behaviours amongst consumers. It has transformed their habits and impacts all parts of society: food distribution, general business, specialists, B2B, industry, services, public services, etc. All links in the chain are affected.

The smartphone brought consumers the possibility of interacting with the world in a few seconds, to search for information, to educate themselves, to arrange a meeting, to get directions in an unknown town, etc. At any time they can learn about a product or service and effortlessly buy it, even when they’re at the physical point of sale. They know more than the retailer who only has the brand’s old computer system, which may hardly have evolved in years.

While we know that 90% of customers make enquiries before going into a shop and that 64% of French people state that they look up information about the desired product on their smartphone at the point of sale, we can only speculate about whether this behaviour has become systemic amongst consumers. It’s almost as if the competition is constantly in their pocket.

64% of consumers think that smartphones and mobile apps help them organise their everyday lives better.*1 This shows how much this device has become central to daily life. This trend will not be reversed. The smartphone will simply continue to evolve; it is more and more powerful, smaller and smaller, and incorporates still more artificial intelligence. We admit our dependency: 7 out of 10 French people confess to being addicted to their smartphones*2

With the growth of voice/personal assistants, this dependency will only become more and more marked. According to an IFOP study, French people state that they would like to have a personal assistant to make shop purchases, in order to have a more reassuring conversation than with the salespeople.*3 IIt’s almost a case of mentoring, and having an individualised relationship with the brand.

WILL THIS NEW WAY OF INTERACTING BECOME STANDARD IN THE FUTURE?

How do we cope with the flood of these new technologies - at the rate imposed by the GAFAM companies? These businesses are the most powerful of our time and have set very high standards of customer experience, thereby significantly increasing consumer expectations and making some businesses obsolete. Moreover, these technologies drive new generations to turn away from traditional retail in favour of online shopping. Among 14-23 year olds, digital shopping has edged ahead of physical shopping with 7.36% purchases a month online against 6.40% physical purchases.*4 This is also a generation which embraces “Freemium” models. We are in a time when it has become the norm for everything to be free for these ultra-connected consumers (albeit in exchange for personal data). Even if recent scandals may have frightened some people, it is still the case that approximately 16% are willing to provide their personal data in exchange for free services.*5

PERSONAL DATA AND GDPR ARE THE SUBJECTS OF THE MOMENT!

Those businesses which know how to propose an alternative which respects our private lives will have a competitive advantage. A project allowing better handling of personal data has been born. It is called “SOLID”, developed by Tim Berners-Lee - the inventor of WWW and HTML language - and MIT.

Its concept is to decentralise the web. Each person would be able to create a POD: their Personal Online Data store, in order to take back control of their personal data. It’s the exact opposite of what exists currently; with businesses possessing the POD of each individual. In practical terms, consumers could chose the data which they want to share, as well as choosing which sites and apps will have access to it.

This initiative will undoubtedly be a turning point for all the key organisations using personal data, as well as for the entire Freemium model. It will help to restore the confidence of consumers in the context of web neutrality.

In the meantime, the GAFAM companies have designed the first of their voice / personal assistants. Their objective? To be at the heart of their home and to become indispensable for consumers.

By having the advantage of being “first-mover” and in a well-placed position, the GAFAMs are already several years ahead of all the other key players. It is therefore highly unlikely that they will make space for new entrants.

Let’s take Amazon as an example, effectively representing 50% of the e-commerce market in the USA and which accounted for 80% of e-commerce growth in 2018! *6

Another significant fact. According to a recent study carried out by Jumpshot in the USA, almost 54% of product searches are carried out directly on the Amazon website. They no longer take place on search engines such as Google. In 2015, the rate was 46%.*7

*1 Source: Results of the annual Digital Impact survey conducted by the Apigee Institute.
*2 Source: blogdumoderateur.com - Study: The Digital Behaviors of the French
*3 Source: frenchweb.fr - The New Shopping Habits of French Consumers
*4 Source: blogdumoderateur.com - Study: The Digital Behaviors of the French
*5 Source: Forgerock - Consumer Trust, Consent and Knowledge in the Age of Digital Identity
*6 Source: www.lsa-conso.fr - Amazon Will Capture 80% of US E-Commerce Growth in 2018
*7 Source: Jumpshot USA Study