Abstract
This exploratory research aimed to observe if the purchase channel used (online versus physical store) could influence the number and the type of unplanned purchases in a supermarket purchase situation. 64 participants were asked to simulate a supermarket purchase using a shopping list and a predefined budget. Participants were divided into two conditions: online shopping and physical store shopping simulation.Findings show that consumers purchase more unplanned items (and spent more money on unplanned purchases) when they buy in physical stores, as well as items on promotion. They also tend to spend more time in the decision-making process when compared to participants shopping online. In addition, online consumers spend more money on items that were on their shopping list.Our findings are important to the literature, demonstrating that consumer reactions towards shopping differ according to the channel. Advertisers and web designers can also benefit from these findings by making better decisions regarding online advertising, specifically in the retail domain. Suggestions for future research are provided in the end.
Highlights
The online purchase channel became a fundamental part of the purchasing process, allowing new forms of intermediation between the organization and the consumer
We proposed that in a grocery shopping situation with resource to a shopping list the consumer will purchase more unplanned items when buying in an offline purchase channel than in an online purchase channel (H1), suggesting a more rational decision-making process in a online channel, in line with the findings from previous studies (Huyghe et al, 2017)
Regarding the effect that the variable group could have on the purchase of unplanned products, here expressed by the variables Acquisition of Unplanned Products, Type of Unplanned Products, and Quantity of Unplanned Products, the following was obtained: there was a statistically significant effect of the Group variable (1-offline and 2-online) on the acquisition/non-acquisition of unplanned products to those mentioned and quantified in the shopping list provided (t (62) = 3.577; p = 0.001), proving that more participants from Group 1 (M = .77, SD = .43) purchased more unplanned products when compared to Group 2 (M = .36, SD = .49), this difference being a consequence of the potential effect of the channel and the group in which participants were inserted
Summary
The online purchase channel (website or application that allows ecommerce) became a fundamental part of the purchasing process, allowing new forms of intermediation between the organization and the consumer. In 2017, an estimated 1.66 billion people worldwide purchased goods online. The report “Accelerating the growth of e-commerce: 2015 Edition” (Kantar Worldpanel, 2015) anticipates that online retailing should reach the worldwide 130 billion dollars in the end of 2025. It is possible to observe a similar behavior trend, revealing the potential of the online market globally. In the U.S (the second biggest market by global eCommerce sales, according to a study from Remarkety in 20152) about 80 percent of internet users are expected to make at least one purchase online during 2019 (in 2013 this share stood at 73 percent). In Portugal, 61% of Portuguese consumers show confidence in online shopping, while the European average is 53% (Nielsen, 2017). 2.65 billion euros were expected to be spent on e-commerce in Portugal in 2016-alone, an increase of 17% over 2015, reaching almost 3 billion euros (2.95 billion euros) in 20184
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