NEW YORK — CVS and Walgreens were among the top brick-and-mortar retailers in a mobile shopping satisfaction study by mobile solutions firm Mobiquity.
In the survey of 1,000 smartphone and tablet users, conducted by Equation Research, CVS came in sixth as overall as 88% of consumers said the drug chain’s mobile shopping experience was "satisfactory" or "very satisfactory," Mobiquity reported Wednesday.
The only retailers ahead of CVS in terms of overall mobile shopping satisfaction were Apple Stores (90% of consumers deemed "satisfactory" or "very satisfactory"), Best Buy (90%), Kohl’s (90%), Target (89%) and Walmart (89%).
Forty-one percent of respondents described CVS’ mobile shopping experience as "very satisfactory," behind only Apple Stores (51%).
Of the retailers most browsed by smartphone users, Walgreens came in ninth (cited by 11% of shoppers polled) and CVS was tenth (cited by 9% of consumers).
Walmart was the most-browsed brick-and-mortar retailer by smartphone users (28%), followed by Target (22%), Best Buy (21%), Apple Stores (15%), Home Depot (15), Macy’s (12%), Lowe’s (12%) and Kohl’s (11%).
Among tablet users, Walmart also was the most-browsed retail chain, cited by 32% of consumers. Next were Best Buy (29%), Target (28%), Apple Stores (25%), Home Depot (25%), Lowe’s (20%), Macy’s (19%), Kohl’s (18%), Costco (15%) and Sears (14%).
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CLICK IMAGE TO LINK TO STUDY DATA (Source: Mobiquity) |
Walgreens came in seventh in terms of the chains where smartphone shoppers purchase the most, cited by 8% of consumers. The drug chain was behind only Walmart (23%), Target (14%), Best Buy (14%), Apple Stores (14%), Macy’s (10%) and Home Depot (9%).
Tablet users also cited Walgreens as one of the brick-and-mortar retailers where they buy the most, with 7% of those shoppers naming the drug chain, which came in tenth. Walgreens came in behind Walmart (24%), Best Buy (24%), Apple Stores (19%), Target (17%), Macy’s (14%), Kohl’s (13%), Home Depot (12%), Lowe’s (9%) and Sears (8%).
Mobiquity’s research also revealed that consumers mix and match their paths to purchase.
After browsing retail chains’ mobile apps and mobile sites on their smartphones, 32% completed their purchase in-store, and 66% bought through other channels (27% via smartphone, 20% via tablet and 19% online via computer). And after browsing retailers via their tablets, 33% went on to make the purchase on their tablet, 27% in-store, 21% on smartphones and 19% online via computer.
Conversely, 41% purchased via their mobile devices after browsing in-store. Thirty-one percent cited cheaper prices as their motivation, 19% said the product was not in stock, and 13% said they bought via their mobile devices because the checkout lines were too long.
"Today’s consumer has multiple paths to purchase, and their mobile shopping experiences not only drive revenue through mobile channels but also influence in-store and online sales," Andrew Hiser, chief creative officer at Mobiquity, said in a statement.
"It is the retailer’s prerogative to build seamless and consistent offline, online and mobile shopping experiences so that wherever and however the customer chooses to shop, it is a positive experience," Hiser noted. "Because so much of customer loyalty is tied to the brand experience, it’s key — especially during the holiday season where so much attention is being paid to mobile commerce — that retailers deliver the best possible mobile shopping experience and ensure the sale."
Slow load time was named by consumers as the chief reason for an unsatisfactory mobile shopping experience, cited by 50% of smartphone app users and by 67% of tablet app users. Other key reasons for an unsatisfying experience included poor navigation (named by 35% of smartphone app users and 24% of tablet app users) and checkout problems (cited by 19% of smartphone app users and 57% of tablet app users).
In a separate report Tuesday by Consumer Reports’ ShopSmart publication, Walgreens was named as the best overall drug store mobile app for managing a family’s health care. The consumer advocacy group cited the ability to refill prescriptions, set reminders to take medications, and access coupons and other shopping offers right from the Walgreens mobile app.
