Wirecard International Holiday Shopping Report 2018

ASCHHEIM, Germany, November 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Combination of digital and physical channels is key for consumers globally   

- The report reveals exclusive insights about  omnichannel shopping  behavior,  mobile payments as the key  tech  trend  for consumers  globally  and  peak days like Black Friday

- Key finding:  The  vast majority (82%) of consumers uses  multiple  sales channels during the purchasing process and  prefers to shop online or mobile  (68%)

- Price, special offers and  product quality are the main factors influencing the purchasing decision

Wirecard, the global innovation leader in digital financial technology, today presented the findings of the Wirecard International Holiday Shopping Report 2018. Over 3,000 consumers were surveyed about their shopping habits and preferences during the end of year holiday season and beyond. The results show a clear preference for digital shopping channels in combination with physical ones in order to benefit from fast availabilities online, compare prices and have a real experience in-store.

Markus Eichinger, Executive Vice President Group Strategy at Wirecard, said, "Today's consumers are willing and able to shop around and compare offers before buying and are also open to trying new brands if they meet their needs. The Wirecard International Holiday Shopping Report 2018 clearly shows that merchants have to provide true shopping experiences via digital and physical channels in order to meet their customers wherever they decide to make a purchase, whether that be via an e-commerce site, a mobile app or in-store. We at Wirecard identified this trend early on and today drive forward and enable channel convergence within the framework of our digital commerce platform."

Key findings:   

-  Black Friday is the single most significant shopping "event" internationally  
39% of respondents globally say they plan to shop on Black Friday. In Brazil, the percentage of Black Friday shoppers is the highest (67%), followed by U.K. (40%), Germany (40%) and the U.S. (38%). Hong Kong was the only country not to have Black Friday in first position, consumers here prefer to take advantage of Boxing Day sales (33%), which is very common in some Asian markets and South Africa.

- The holiday shopping season is a popular time to try new shops and items 
This is a popular time for consumers to try out new stores or websites with over three quarters (77%) of respondents globally saying they would be likely or very likely to do so. In all countries surveyed, respondents said they spent the most money on clothing and accessories (58%), electronics (56%) and toys and games (38%).

- Consumers consider mobile payments the top shopping-related technology trend 
Globally, consumers would most like to see mobile payment solutions implemented to improve their buying experience (46%). This was followed by virtual or augmented reality (26%) and artificial intelligence / machine learning (22%). In Brazil, shopping via voice recognition is highly regarded as well (30%).

- The vast majority shops digital  
Over two thirds (68%) of consumers globally expect to make their purchases during the holiday season digitally either via a desktop site, mobile app, or mobile site. Overall, 18% plan to shop in traditional stores, with 22% of U.S. respondents planning to shop in a physical outlet, but only 8% of German consumers intend to do so.

-  Consumers look for a true experience in-store 
In all countries, the most important factor which would influence a consumer's decision to shop in-store is price (59%), followed by quality of products (45%) and special offers or discounts (32%). The same three factors are the most influential when it comes to choosing to buy online. In the U.S., being able to see, test or try items before purchase was considered more important than in the other countries; in Brazil customer service on-site counts.

- Omnichannel is key for consumers globally 
An enormous 82% of consumers globally said they were either likely or very likely to combine various channels during the purchasing process - with Malaysia proving particularly fond of cross-channel shopping (96%), followed by Brazil (92%). The overall reason for using a range of channels was to compare prices with over half of consumers (51%) stating this as their top answer.

Merchants can profit from the Wirecard platform, which allows them to easily combine their distribution channels and meet the needs of today's consumers. Wirecard offers a constantly expanding ecosystem of real-time value added services built around innovative digital payments.

For more information on the Wirecard International Holiday Shopping Survey, please click here.

The Wirecard International Holiday Shopping Report 2018 is based on the results of an independent survey carried out by Wirecard in October and November 2018. A total of 3,193 consumers over the age of 18 in select countries like Brazil, Germany, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, the U.K. and the U.S. provided answers. Further information about the survey findings can be found in the full report.

About Wirecard:  

Wirecard (GER:WDI) is one of the world's fastest growing digital platforms in the area of financial commerce. We provide both business customers and consumers with a constantly expanding ecosystem of real-time value-added services built around innovative digital payments by using an integrated B2B2C approach. This ecosystem concentrates on the areas payment & risk, retail & transaction banking, loyalty & couponing, data analytics & conversion rate enhancement in all sales channels (online, mobile, ePOS). Wirecard operates regulated financial institutions in several key markets, holds issuing and acquiring licenses from all major payment and card networks. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (DAX and TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060). Visit us on www.wirecard.com, follow us on Twitter @wirecard and on Facebook @wirecardgroup.

Wirecard media contact:

Wirecard AG
Jana Tilz
Tel.: +49(0)89-4424-1363
Email: jana.tilz@wirecard.com