We have website analytics that purport to tell us how long it was between someone's first visit to the site and when they made a purchase. But whenever someone browses anonymously or deletes cookies the data is compromised, so we're often told that people just showed up today and on impulse bought a $1536 wheelset. That may be true on occasion (and we wish it were true far more than occasionally), but we wanted to use the survey to get a better sense of what the purchase journey looks like. So we asked:
We actually have more near-impulse buyers than we expected, with 1 in 10 of you deciding to pull the trigger within a week. Keep in mind that this is all survey respondents, not necessarily our customers or custom wheelset buyers. When you cut this data by looking at people who intend to buy a factory built wheelset (e.g. Zipp 303, Mavic Comete), the 1-week or less shoppers drop to only 8%, but those who shopped for 2-3 weeks jumped to 46%. 22% of factory wheelset shoppers are kicking the tires for 2 months or more, compared to 29% of custom shoppers.
So our hypothesis that custom wheelset shoppers are in market longer is supported by our data. Before the survey, Dave and I speculated that the real number was something like 45-60 days of active shopping before buying. Dave has quite a few electronic paper trails to bear that out, including many that span months between the initial inquiry and the actual purchase. In reality, the average duration is not representative of any actual person's shopping habits. 56% pull the trigger in a month or less, while almost 1 in 5 are kicking the tires for 3 months or more.
So we were right in a way that actually didn't help us at all. Now we realize that some folks are ready to buy quickly, and our job is to improve their ability to self-serve and compare on the site. And there's another cohort turning options over for a really long time. Our job with them is probably not to try and accelerate but to lean into their process, and give them the time they need to be confident in their choice.
Or is it? We'd love to hear about how long you shop, what compels you to smash that buy now button and what's holding you back. Let us know your process in the comments.
7 comments
Why wasn’t “less that three minutes” an option… you know, for us compulsive shoppers! :)
Ok, I’ll go first… the price of what I’m looking to purchase certainly influences the time I spend; the higher the price the greater the lead up. Additionally, I spend more time getting to know what I know least about. My own research, or the recommendations of trusted allies, can speed that time a bit. And lastly, I’ll say that my belief in a company can influence how long it takes me to pull the trigger. Hope this helps!