Criteo
Research Reveals that Taiwanese
Shoppers are Demanding Positive Mobile App Experiences; Local Retail Brands
Must Respond to Boost Engagement and Sales
·
Taipei – 28 September 2017 – Criteo (NASDAQ: CRTO), the commerce marketing technology company, today
launched findings from a Criteo-commissioned study conducted
by Retail Week
Connect, titled “App Commerce Goes Big in Asia-Pacific”. From June to July 2017,
Retail Week Connect surveyed 500
Taiwanese consumers to analyse their attitudes and behaviour regarding
retail and shopping apps. The study findings highlighted that brands in Taiwan must
now invest in mobile app optimisation and targeted marketing strategies to
enhance mobile shopper engagement and increase sales.
The need for brands to invest in a mobile app optimisation strategy is
driven by the fact that three-quarters of
Taiwanese respondents have two
or more retail and shopping apps installed on their smartphones. 91% have completed their entire purchasing journey –
discovered, searched for and purchased an item – solely through mobile apps. In
Taiwan, high
smartphone penetration but limited data packages also mean that retail and
shopping apps are not just used on-the-go but also at home.
With more than half of Taiwanese respondents having clicked on a product ad appearing within
an app before purchasing the advertised product on their mobile devices, local
brands must leverage targeted marketing to engage shoppers outside the walled
gardens of their owned assets – on third-party apps like LINE and Facebook.
“Smaller brands need scale and personalisation to compete on an equal
footing with larger retailers. To do so, they must tap into an open commerce
marketing ecosystem and use machine learning to connect shoppers to the
products they need and love. Criteo’s technology allows local brands to engage
shoppers with relevant experiences on both retail apps and third-party
platforms, thereby directly driving sales and profits,” said Alban Villani,
General Manager, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Criteo.
The Real Impact of Retail and Shopping App Experiences
Branded apps are becoming a crucial touchpoint on shoppers’ paths to
purchase. In fact, more
than 60% of Taiwanese respondents
find it more enjoyable and convenient to use a retail and shopping app over a brand’s
mobile website.
Three-quarters of Taiwanese respondents said that a good app experience positively influences their opinions of
the brand. Conversely, less than half of the
respondents shared that a bad retail and shopping app would negatively impact
their opinion of a retailer. Given that the effect of a good experience is
stronger than that of a bad one, this underlines the importance of investing in
the customer experience and ensuring that an app meets shoppers’ expectations.
Key factors and features that ensure a retail and shopping app meets
expectations:
·
Financial and data security[LS1] : This is a key barrier in Taiwan, where more than
a third of respondents feel that submitting personal and financial data would
affect their usage of shopping apps due to security issues.
·
Incentive and special promotions or offers[LS2] : More than 40% of Taiwanese respondents indicated that
“promotions or special incentives” is the top reason to install mobile apps, followed
by “convenience” with 39% of Taiwanese respondents.
·
Easy to use[LS3] : The ease of use of shopping apps is a big issue in Taiwan,
similar to other APAC countries. Almost
2 in 5 Taiwanese respondents indicated “complicated
and uneasy to use” as their top reason for deleting or not using an app.
·
Customer service[LS4] : More
than 70% of Taiwanese respondents highlighted that being able to contact a
customer service representative through an app is important, of which 68% indicated
that the option to chat with a customer service representative in real-time via
an in-app messaging function would be ideal.
Financial and Data Security Key to Building Trust in
Brands and Their Apps
More than half of online shoppers felt more comfortable using mobile devices to shop
as compared to using desktops or laptops. This is similar to what was observed in the other five
countries surveyed for the research – it was unanimous that smartphones were
not only owned by most but were also most often used to browse the internet.
However, the security of personal and financial data was cited as the most
prominent issue preventing locals from using retail and shopping apps. Apps should be marketed and
developed as a trusted solution to shopping online by having brands prioritise
shopper privacy and data protection, particularly when it comes to financial
and data security issues as this is the top priority for Taiwan shoppers.
“Retailers are seeing the value of using technology that puts user data
into action at every point of the purchasing journey. Shoppers also appreciate
that their data is used to deliver relevant engagement, but have concerns on
privacy and security. Criteo is a firm advocate of proactively addressing these
concerns, being transparent on how data is being used and creating a trusted
commerce ecosystem. We aim to make this an industry-wide standard,” said
Villani.