A Retail Week survey reveals that three quarters of consumers believe that Click & Collect at High Street shops should be free.
And even those that said they would pay aren’t willing to pay much. Most said they would only be willing to cough up between £1 and £2. Older people are the most trenchant on the issue: 88% of 55 to 64-years-olds were against click & collect charges. But 56% of 18 to 24-year-olds shared that view.
Last week John Lewis announced that they would be introducing a £2 charge on click & collect orders at the end of July. John Lewis MD Andy Street claimed that free C&C was “unsustainable”.
And a charge dramatically increases the expectations of customers, according to Doddle CEO, Tim Robinson: “The decision to charge £2 by John Lewis is in line with research Doddle has undertaken previously to establish consumers’ price sensitivity to click and collect services; however, once a service attracts a charge, consumers expect it to be a seamless experience and a more sophisticated service. Customers don’t and won’t wait in a queue if they are paying for the privilege. Whether retailers decide to charge for click and collect or not, the customer experience has to come front and centre.”
One Response
entirely depends on the click/collect service.
the price isnt so much the important part, as the perceived cost.
if the customer thinks “the size of that John Lewis store, they must have one in there already. if not, there will be a delivery van round tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day….”
the perceived cost to provide c/c is zero. why am i being charged £2 for it? i’m being ripped off.
if you dont have a Brick & Mortar presence, the choice is delivery to home at £10, or C/C (delivery to store) for £2, then £2 is a bargain.
– if you offer free delivery, then charge for C/C, its back to being a rip off.
from a retailer point of view, i can just central-warehouse, instead of gambling with volume and floorspace, downsize properties, and not only save money, but charge the customer for my cheapskate business model.
– i think the customer realises this a lot of the time, and doesnt want to pay for his own inconvenience.