A study of shopper experiences by researchers at the Wharton School of Business (University of Pennsylvania) found that 58 percent of shoppers experienced at least one problem in any given shopping visit, and that younger shoppers reported the most problems. Of the the ten most-reported shopping problems, nine were related to sales associates, and just one to the store itself. The annual survey of 2,200 American shoppers by the pretigious business school tries to correlate factors that degrade the customer experience, and how they’re related to shopper loyalty–a major factor in Apple’s retail initiative. The 2007 survey found there was a direct link between problems and loyalty: 82 percent said they would definitely continue shopping at a problem-free store, but that dropped to 62 percent when the shopper encountered a problem. The recommendation rate also dropped for a problem store, from 79 percent to 53%. The most-reported problem was a “not my department” attitude by sales associates.
Shoppers from 18 to 29 years-old reported the highest rate of problems, 68 percent. At the other end, shoppers over 65 years-old reported problems in just 41 percent of cases.
Gender didn’t make much of a difference in problem rates among 18 to 40 year-olds: 56 percent of females reported a shopping problem, while males reported it 54 percent of the time. Those over 41 years-old showed a wider difference: 51 percent among females and 41 percent among males.
Across all categories of stores, a store problem was reported more often than a sales associate problem. Big-box or so-called “category killer” stores reported the highest problem rates (52% store, 58% associate), followed by specialty apparel (49%, 37%) and mass merchandisers (42%, 39%). Speciality stores, of which Apple stores are a member, had problem rates of 41 percent for store problems and 35 percent for associate problems.
The most-reported problem by those taking the shopper survey was that sales associates had a “That’s not my problem” attitude. Ranking second was that that sales associates couldn’t be found, followed ironically by the complaint that sales associates, “followed, pestered when you wanted to browse on own.”
Other complaints in order were that sales associates acted like the customer was intruding on their time or conversations, were insensitive to long check-out lines, not intersted in helping the customer find what they needed, were impolite or discourteous, didn’t listen when the customer explained what they wanted, and ignored customers by not making eye contact or saying “Hello.”
A sales associate problem has more impact on the customer’s loyalty than a store problem, and generated more word-of-mouth reaction, those taking the survey said. The survey found that shoppers told an average of 1.5 persons about a sales associate problem, but told just 0.9 persons of a store-related problem.
The survey found four types of “sales archetypes”: the Educator who knows the products, the Engager who is friendly, the Expeditor who ensures customers’ times are wasted, an the Authentic who shows interest in shoppers’ needs and preferences.
Among those sales associate types, the survey found that the Engager generated the most lost customers (7.5%), compared to the Authentic (2.3%). The Expediter and Educator were nearly equal, with 4.3 percent and 4.1 percent rates respectively.
On a more complex level, the survey found that different store types require a different mix of sales archetypess, and that male and female shoppers require different mixes of competencies.
And perhaps most related to Apple’s retail initiative, survey shoppers were entirely split on if they’d had a “Wow” experience at a store–47 percent said “Yes” but 47 percent said “No.” Males reported a “Wow” 39 percent of the time, while females reported it 51 percent of the time.
Download (Powerpoint) the survey results presentation as given at the 2008 National Retail Federal annual conference.
