Why seamless digital experiences are crucial for South African retailers

Photo by David Dvorácek on Unsplash

Unlocking the new customer mindset

The 2024 Mzansi Consumer Barometer by Kantar revealed that with South Africa’s e-commerce market continuing to grow, customers are demanding more from the retail brands they support. Consumers are placing higher demands on the brands in their ecosystems, seeking out value wherever they can!

Kantar’s Mzansi Consumer Barometer 2024

Kantar  2 Jul 2024

Elaborating on this is Jason Sive, CEO of Mobicred and digital executive at RCS, who says that retailers need to shift their mindset from “isolation to consolidation,” by forming strategic partnerships with existing platforms and businesses, to offer collective value.

“In a connected world, each customer has an ecosystem of brands that they support and interact with every day. That ecosystem needs to fit seamlessly into their lives, providing them with frictionless touchpoints and customer experiences that they can switch between effortlessly. By collaborating with complementary brands, retailers can enhance their offerings, drive loyalty, and stay relevant in an increasingly competitive market.”

“The key to gaining an edge is therefore to create synergies that benefit both the businesses involved and the customers they serve, ensuring a more integrated and satisfying shopping experience,” Sive says.

Seamless online shopping experiences are essential

To attract the spend of South Africa’s growing community of value-hackers, brands need to combine efforts to alleviate customers’ mental load by predicting their needs and catering to those demands with value-filled offerings.

Online users will rarely wait longer than three seconds for a webpage to load. Findings such as these point to the importance of utility – customers no longer want to compromise on their choices because of lack of time or money.

The answer is for brands to see their customers more holistically – to provide them with the choice and convenience with which they have become accustomed, complemented by frictionless experiences and value.

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However, as we enhance ease of use, it's crucial to recognise that seamless interactions can also open doors to potential security risks. The challenge lies in striking the right balance, ensuring that while customers enjoy streamlined, accessible services, they are also protected from fraud and other threats.

Frictionless shopping is all about providing consumers with a seamless, hassle-free experience, where every step of the purchasing process—from browsing to payment—is smooth and intuitive.

In today’s fast-paced world, consumers expect convenience, speed, and security without the need to navigate complex or time-consuming procedures. To tap into this customer base, brands need to prioritise digital accessibility.

Being ‘at the right place, at the right time, with the right offering’ is now critical to attracting clicks.