RichRelevance Digital Grocery Survey: Nearly 50% of US Consumers Will Shop Online for Groceries This Thanksgiving, up from just 20% Last Year
Twice as many people will purchase groceries online this holiday season vs last; popular items are canned goods and beverages – not turkey and pie
San Francisco, Calif. – November 14, 2018 – RichRelevance, the global leader in Experience Personalization, today announced key findings from its Digital Grocery Survey: 2018 Holiday Edition consumer survey. The study finds that more than 4 in 10 Americans (44%) plan to shop online for some or all of the groceries they need for their Thanksgiving or holiday meal this year. This is more than twice as many people who shopped online for Thanksgiving groceries in 2017.
Amazon dominates as the top online grocery destination for shoppers (57%), followed by big-box retailers such as Walmart and Target (48%). Traditional supermarkets like Safeway and Kroger will attract a significant – but quite smaller – number of online shoppers (30%) this holiday.
The top Thanksgiving items that people plan to purchase online are bundled ingredients for side dishes (56%); canned items like cranberry sauce (51%); and beverages including alcohol (44%). Turkey (33%) and frozen/pre-made desserts (31%) are the least likely to be purchased online. When online orders are ready, more shoppers plan to pick up their groceries (47%) than have them delivered to their home (43%).
Americans overwhelmingly turn online for grocery shopping to save time (73%) – and 1 in 4 (26%) choose to shop online because it allows them to shop for groceries during work hours. The top factors keeping people from shopping online for groceries are a lack of trust that others will pick the best or freshest items (50%) followed by a reluctance to spend extra money (37%).
Across the board, respondents have strong opinion on which online tools would be most helpful as they plan and prepare a Thanksgiving or holiday meal. Half of Americans (50%) say that online personalized offers or discounts are helpful, followed by fast, accurate search results on a grocer’s site (46%) and having a grocer present them with relevant alternatives when a desired item is not available (43%).
“With online grocery shopping on the rise, it is critical that consumers have the best possible digital experience,” said Michael Ni, CMO, RichRelevance. “We’re hearing directly from consumers that personalization and relevance define a positive, valuable online shopping experience. As companies race to differentiate and establish their brands in grocery, these experience investments will be critical in determining market leaders.”
The survey of 1,565 U.S consumers was completed online in November 2018.
