Coveo report: UK shoppers demand better digital experiences

Coveo has released its fourth annual CX Industry Report, highlighting a considerable interest among UK shoppers to enhance their digital shopping experiences. The report underscores the importance of a unified, AI-powered customer experience, prioritizing relevant search results, personalized interactions, and transparency in data use among key findings.

One of the critical insights from the report indicates that 90% of UK consumers expect their online experiences to meet or exceed traditional in-store experiences. However, 36% of those surveyed found website navigation to be overly complex and slow, pointing to irrelevant search results as a particular frustration. Additionally, 35% cited "too many choices, difficult to filter" as a significant issue when shopping online.

The significance of search in shaping customer perceptions and experiences came to the forefront with 61% of the surveyed 4,000 US and UK adults stating that easily finding what they need in just a few clicks, along with supporting content, strongly impacts their view of a company. Despite the anticipation surrounding tools like ChatGPT, only 5% of respondents currently use such generative AI tools for search, though 72% expect their digital experiences to evolve along with emerging trends like GenAI.

"Search is the throughline for the entire digital experience," stated Patrick Martin, EVP of Global Customer Experience at Coveo. "As the findings show, people see brand sites as more authoritative than Google search, and embedding AI search and generative answering into sites has never been more important." Martin emphasized that search bars are transforming into intent or advisory bars, offering brands new ways to interact directly with their customers.

The report further reveals several key trends and expectations among customers. One notable finding is the prevalence of social media in discovering new products, with 39% of respondents often or always finding something new when browsing. However, only 14% convert through social media, with 45% preferring to navigate to and make their purchase through the brand's website.

Virtual assistants also came under focus, with 49% of respondents expecting virtual shopping assistants to help with product selection or troubleshooting. GenAI tools like ChatGPT are also anticipated to play a significant role in education before shopping, with 37% expecting these tools to inform them about products before making a purchase.

When it comes to customer support, human interaction remains essential. While 35% of those surveyed prefer human support regardless of the issue complexity, 31% have a clear distinction—preferring self-service for simple issues such as password resets and live agents for more complex problems like invoicing issues.

Concerns over data privacy and its use by online retailers also prominently feature, with 65% of UK shoppers expressing anxiety about how their data is handled. Despite these concerns, a similar percentage (65%) are willing to share their data if it results in better deals and offers and are more inclined to share data with brands they trust.

The data collected in the CX Industry Report underscores the critical role of effective search features and personalized customer interactions in shaping customer perceptions and experiences. Companies aiming to stay competitive in the digital marketplace are encouraged to adopt a holistic, AI-driven approach to meet and exceed customer expectations.