Morrison’s online shopping offering has left Midlands supermarket shoppers distinctly underwhelmed, according to detailed research by one of Europe’s leading shopping behaviour specialists.
The latest research by SBXL reveals that Morrison’s shoppers are less likely to abandon bricks and mortar and shop online than customers of any other supermarket. The research, carried out in January, also shows that Morrison’s may have blundered in choosing the Midlands to begin the roll out of their online service. Midlands shoppers are shown to be the most reluctant to move online in the whole of the UK.
The research is part of SBXL’s Continuous Shopper Insight programme which surveys a cross section of shoppers on a monthly basis. Information from 1000 shoppers a month is analysed to give an ongoing picture of shopping habits and shoppers’ attitudes, in particular their attitudes towards supermarket shopping.
The research shows that only a fifth of Morrison’s customers would consider taking advantage of the store’s online service, compared to around 40 per cent of shoppers at Asda and Tesco.
SBXL’s senior insight manager Serena Tippler said this could mean that Morrison’s has missed the boat by launching their online shopping offering so much later than its competitors.
“Despite the online launch targeting Midlands shoppers, no difference was seen in shoppers’ intentions regarding going online in January. There has been a slight increase – about four per cent – in people who said they might consider online shopping at some stage in the future, but considering it is a long way from an actual change in behaviour,” she said.
“Our research also shows that Morrison’s would have had more chance of success if they had launched in the south of the country rather than the Midlands. Nearly half of all shoppers in the south say that they would consider online shopping – much higher than the Midlands and north. By launching in the Midlands, they have focussed on the region least likely to do shopping online, which suggests they could have benefited from higher quality research ahead of launch,” she added.
The research also showed that nearly half of Tesco and Asda shoppers across the country expect to do some of their grocery shopping online in the next year. By contrast, only 27 per cent of Morrison’s customers were planning to shop online.
“We survey a wide range of shoppers geographically and across the income scale. The message we are getting is that all major retailers, but Morrison’s in particular, are going to have to work a lot harder if they want people to change their habits,” said Serena Tippler.
SBXL, with offices in Lichfield and Tamworth, is a leading retail research firm, combining state-of-the-art technology with a detailed knowledge of human psychology. As well as regular shopper tracking, the company provides retailers and brands with in-depth insights, using techniques such as in-store filming to capture behaviour, The company also provides detailed studies of facial expressions and non-verbal communication to identify sub-conscious decision-making processes, and eye-tracking to determine what shoppers see in-store.
The company works with leading retailers and brands across Europe, North America and the Far East.