Want that pair of new shoes? It’s going to cost you $50 — and your zip code, your phone number and your email address.
Annoyed yet? So are your customers.
Companies are increasingly asking customers to fork over more than just money to make purchases. They want their personal information. Unfortunately for these businesses, many customers say they’re becoming fed up with dishing out those details, according to a recent survey by LoyaltyOne reported in HubSpot.
The bottom line is eventually you’re going to ask your customer for too much information and customers will push back. It’s already starting to get there. It’s becoming intrusive.
Companies say the information is needed to give customers a better shopping experience. Collecting the data can help with merchandising and providing personalized communications based on preferences.
However, only 52 percent of customers surveyed reported that they received better service after giving out their personal information, and nearly one-third of respondents reported that their information was compromised or stolen.
Fears about privacy can steer some shoppers away. Almost a quarter of consumers said that concerns about how a company would use their personal information prevented them from making a purchase.
Consumers are frustrated and retailers should keep in mind that there is a point of no return for shoppers. And if a customer doesn’t buy anything, everything else is irrelevant.
Source: Network Solutions Small Business Blog, November 2011
