Global Study Reveals Online Shoppers Want More Flexibility

• Mobile Is a Catalyst to Omnichannel Shopping and Retailers Should Address Technology Limitations
• Online Shoppers Want Alternate Delivery Location and More Payment Options
• Free Shipping Increasingly Important Along With Greater Emphasis on Free Returns

RESTON, Va., and ATLANTA, GA, March 3, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Online shoppers around the world want the ability to search and shop on multiple channels and devices, expect to see alternate delivery and payment options, and when it comes to shipping and returns, "free" is a driving factor to complete the sale.

Today, comScore, Inc. SCOR, a leader in measuring the digital world, and UPSUPS, a global leader in logistics and transportation services, released the second UPS Pulse of the Online Shopper™ Global Study revealing emerging trends from the leading e-commerce markets in Asia, Brazil, Europe, Mexico and the U.S.

According to the study, online shoppers across these markets are looking for alternate delivery options. This is especially high in Asia, where 45% of respondents said they would prefer to have their online order delivered to locations other than their home. When not at home to sign for a package, 33% said they want their items shipped to a local retail location authorized to hold the package for pickup at their convenience. Asian shoppers are avid technology users and the least patient with 27% expecting same-day delivery and 48% expecting next-day shipping to be offered by retailers, the highest of any market.

Brazilian consumers are the most advanced and social in their online shopping habits. More than half (56%) of their purchases are made online, the highest of any market, and 64% said they are influenced by reviews or posts on social media to help decide which products to purchase. However, they experience barriers to shopping on a mobile device: 39% said they can't get a clear or large product image, 31% said they cannot easily view product information, and 34% said it is hard to compare products. Over a third (38%) of online shoppers in Brazil are willing to wait 11 days or more for their international orders in order to qualify for free shipping.

European online shoppers are gradually embracing emerging technologies. They make the fewest purchases on a smartphone (19%) compared to the other four markets and less than half (40%) use retailer mobile apps. They make more in-store purchases (54%) than they do online, and while shopping in a store, 61% prefer to check out with an associate. In response to delivery questions, 52% said they prefer seeing the expected arrival date rather than the number of days it will take for the item to arrive. 

Mexican online shoppers reflect both the old and new retail landscape. They make the highest percentage of in-store purchases, and cite fraud-related delivery issues as a primary concern. However, they do use mobile technology - 43% reported using their smartphones to research products before visiting a store. And in order to receive items the same day, 60% said they want the ability to purchase items in a store window. Only 35% have returned an online purchase, the least of any market.

American online shoppers are open to new trends on social media and in-store technologies, making more purchases on tablets than any other market. Free shipping continues to drive purchasing decisions as 58% of online shoppers reported adding items to their shopping cart in order to qualify for the incentive. Further, 83% are willing to wait an additional 2 days for delivery if shipping is free, and 68% said free returns shipping is needed to complete a sale. Only 44% of online shoppers said they were satisfied with the flexibility of changing delivery days or rerouting packages.

"Consumers demand more from their package delivery experience, and today's online shopper expects us to respond by creating solutions that are convenient for them," said Alan Gershenhorn, UPS executive vice president and chief commercial officer. "Globally, we now have more than 13 million UPS My Choice^® members and over 15,000 UPS Access Point™ locations and we continue to expand both services to meet their needs."

Online shoppers can use UPS My Choice to reschedule deliveries for a future date or reroute packages to another address. UPS drivers, when unable to deliver a package at a consumer's residence, will leave packages at a nearby UPS Access Point location and the consumer can pick up their items at their convenience. These local businesses are designed to be close and convenient to the consumer's delivery address. UPS My Choice members can also send their packages directly to a UPS Access Point location in select markets in Europe and North America.

Click on this animated map to learn more about each market.

About UPS Pulse of the Online Shopper: A Customer Experience Global Study

The global study is based on a comScore survey of more than 19,000 frequent online shoppers in the U.S., Brazil, Europe (France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK), Asia (China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and South Korea), and Mexico. For more information, please contact Susan Engleson at sengleson@comscore.com.

About UPS

UPS UPS is a global leader in logistics, offering a broad range of solutions including transporting packages and freight; facilitating international trade, and deploying advanced technology to more efficiently manage the world of business. Headquartered in Atlanta, UPS serves more than 220 countries and territories worldwide. The company can be found on the web at ups.com® and its corporate blog can be found at longitudes.ups.com. To get UPS news direct, visit pressroom.ups.com/RSS.

About comScore
comScore, Inc. SCOR is a global leader in digital measurement and analytics, delivering insights on web, mobile and TV consumer behavior that enable clients to maximize the value of their digital investments. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.

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