Is it About Time to Ditch the Queue for Christmas Shopping?
Having patience is admirable, yet enduring lines can test anyone’s resolve. According to emarketer.com, about 60% of shoppers find lengthy checkout queues to be a frustrating part of their service encounters. Shockingly, we devote approximately six months of our lives waiting in lines, time we can’t afford to squander in today’s fast-paced world.
Some have even experienced waiting in virtual queues. Just last month, Taylor Swift fans had to endure a 2000-person Ticketmaster queue to snag tickets for her show, which was understandably met with displeasure. However, the bulk of our queue time is undeniably spent in physical stores.
Long queues are a well-known weakness for retailers. They not only dampen the spirits of time-pressed shoppers but also diminish the likelihood of making purchases, leading to abandoned items and lost sales. This raises the question: if queues benefit neither the shopper nor the store, why do they persist? The straightforward answer is that they’re difficult to resolve. Thankfully, advancements in technology offer promising signs that lengthy lines might soon become obsolete.
Here are a few ways that retailers can, and are already, tackling lines.
Better knowledge of shopper routines
As consumers, our behaviors follow patterns. Stores have begun observing and adapting to our daily habits to minimize queues. An intriguing consequence of the recent economic downturn is that more people are delaying shopping until major retail holidays. While fewer trips can save consumers money, time, and fuel, for stores, it translates to increased foot traffic on particular days. Understanding how consumers adjust their lifestyles is crucial for stores to effectively address lengthy queues.
