Home shopping & multi-channel retailing trends 2009

Despite a tough start to 2009, Royal Mail's latest research on the home shopping industry reveals a resurgence in the popularity of home shopping. This was driven mainly by online shopping, with catalogues and other home shopping categories holding their own, and mailed catalogues playing a vital part in driving sales both off- and online.

This 2009 report combines the insights from Royal Mail's Home Shopping Tracker Study and its Delivery Matters survey, highlighting trends in customer behaviour in this multi-channel sector.

The report also reveals what people are buying and spending online, profiles multi-channel shoppers, and highlights the value of giving them a voice through channels such as online forums.

Key insights include:

• Identifying the barriers to using home shopping, such as consumer fears about online fraud.

• The value of catalogues as a resource for multi-channel shoppers with 63% of respondents using them to inform and/or buy from last year.

• 33% of current non-home shoppers indicate they are likely to start shopping from home in the future, showing the sector's growth potential.

• How delivery plays an important role in driving customer loyalty.

• The importance of providing a robust returns policy – 79% say they would not shop with a retailer again after a difficult returns experience.