Fast and Free Shipping, Free and Easy Returns, Accurate Tracking and On-time Deliveries Top Online Shoppers' Wish Lists this Holiday Season

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The Study also found that the more often you shop, the more likely you are to be frustrated. Seventy-three percent of frequent online shoppers (those who shop online daily, or weekly) and 74% of millennials said they were disappointed in some aspect of the post-purchase experience last holiday season.

The top three reasons for consumer frustration are: delayed shipments; shipping costs; and inaccurate tracking.

Root Canals and Revenge

This year's Study included a number of questions asking consumers to associate an online shopping experience with an emotion ("love it! / hate it."), or a range of universally enjoyable, or unpleasant experiences, such as "taking a vacation" or "having a root canal."

For example, 86% equated some aspect of a poor post-purchase experience to "having a root canal," especially these unpleasant events:

• receiving a wrong or damaged item 72%
• taking too long to get a refund after returning an item 64%
• an inconvenient returns process 60%
• having to pay for shipping 47%

Fast and Free Shipping, and Free and Easy Returns

On the bright side, online shoppers did offer advice to retailers and marketplaces about how they can improve the post-purchase experience, particularly around fast and free shipping, and free and easy returns.

Free shipping remains the number one loyalty driver an online retailer can offer consumers. In fact, when given the choice between "free" shipping or "fast" shipping" 80% choose "free," consistent with data collected in each of the past three years. Free shipping was four times more likely to drive consumer loyalty than any other feature that a retailer could offer.

In addition to fast and free shipping, consumers want a free and easy returns process and fast refunds. On average, Amazon refunds consumers 4.5 times faster than other brands.

Returns are on the rise and 51% of all online shoppers, including 66% of millennials, now admit to "bracketing" – purchasing multiple sizes, styles and colors of an item with the intent to return what they don't want.

Seventy-two percent said they "love" when a return label is included in the package. Seventy percent said they "hate" paying for return shipping even more than missing the returns period and getting stuck with an unwanted item (61%).

"Returns seem to have become an unconscious behavior for some frequent online shoppers," said Snyder. "In response to our survey, consumers said they return only 10% of their online purchases, but in reality we know the number is much closer to 25%."

Cross-Border Shopping

The number of cross-border shoppers continues to grow in countries like Australia, Canada, China, Mexico and UK. Of the countries we surveyed, only the US saw a year-over-year decline in the number of cross-border shoppers. Forty-six percent of online shoppers in the US say they have made a cross-border purchase in the past year, versus 49% the year prior.

Of the US consumers who do shop cross-border, nine out of 10 have purchased something from China. Expectations among cross-border shoppers are not dissimilar to those of domestic shoppers, but frustrations with late deliveries and inaccurate tracking are higher, especially on items ordered from China.

Methodology: The 2019 Pitney Bowes Online Shopping Study is based on survey results of more than 8,000 consumers globally. Unless otherwise noted, the information in this press release is based on survey results of more than 3,000 US consumers, ages 18 and up.

Pitney Bowes can help

Pitney Bowes supports retailers and other shippers in the areas of fulfillment, delivery, returns and cross-border. In each of these areas, the Company strives to be the service provider that's easiest to work with, by being more transparent and offering simpler pricing with fewer and lower surcharges than others in the market.

Services include:

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