Friction-Free Checkout Can Turn Deal-Chasers Into Loyal Customers

Can a deal-chaser be turned into a loyal customer? The short answer is yes, but there are crucial steps in changing this powerful mindset, with much hinging on checkout experience.

In studying the differences between these two very different types of shoppers, patterns emerge that show how merchants can sway the fickle bargain hunter and convert them to regulars. The latest Checkout Conversion Index, “At The Checkout: Deal-Chasers Versus Loyal Customers,” a PYMNTS and Checkout.com collaboration, identifies three distinct shopper personas and analyzes what it takes to win their loyalty.

Deal-chasers are the toughest, invariably putting price first with little concern over where that deal is coming from.

“Compared to the other personas, they are more likely to be dissatisfied with their checkout experiences,” the new study found, “but also place less emphasis on these experiences when determining whether they will return to a merchant.”

That’s an opportunity for merchants to turn deal-chasers — who represent 38% of all shoppers — into repeat customers, as they tend to take longer deciding where to buy. We found that 28% took at least 24 hours to complete their most recent online transaction.

Seamless checkout and the right feature set can also change hearts and minds. Per the study, 85% of deal-chasers consider free shipping an important feature, “with 18% indicating it the most important for their purchase journeys.”

Adding buy-button simplicity to that journey can help turn deal-chasers around — a potential boon for retailers, given that they tend to spend the most money.

The latest study finds that deal-chasers spent “$564 on average for their most recent online purchase, far more than loyal shoppers and persuadable consumers, whose latest purchases averaged $393 and $187, respectively. Cracking the code to earn the loyalty of deal-chasers represents an especially lucrative opportunity for online merchants.”

Download your copy: At The Checkout: Deal-Chasers Versus Loyal Customers

Moving ‘The Persuadables’

The other group to focus on are what we call “persuadable consumers.” Falling somewhere between deal-chaser and loyal shoppers, persuadables do have preferred merchants, but not to the exclusion of a great bargain.

As only 26% of consumers we surveyed will pick a preferred merchant over a great deal elsewhere, persuadable consumers are a tantalizing prospect, and 64% of them said a satisfying checkout experience can sway their decision on where to shop.

In other words, checkout experience is persuasive. However, that message needs to reach more merchants: We found “sizable shares of consumers in all three persona groups report dissatisfaction with their most recent checkout journey, with little variation.

“Loyal shoppers felt dissatisfied with 31% of their most recent transactions, while persuadable consumers and deal-chasers felt this way somewhat more often, at 36% for both groups.”

With 76% of loyal customers reporting that a satisfying checkout experience influences their decision to buy — only 11% wait 24 hours or more to buy — it’s essential that checkout is seamless and simple, which can help keep that group loyal while also drawing in other personas.

The big takeaway is that “many online shoppers in each persona category — particularly deal-chasers — feel that the checkout experience plays a significant role in whether they return to a merchant, yet they also frequently come away with a negative impression due to friction at the checkout. Online merchants that bridge this gap can expand their market shares and boost loyalty with customers, both old and new.”

Get the study: At The Checkout: Deal-Chasers Versus Loyal Customers