Many thanks to Oracle Retail for releasing the Cross Channel Commerce 2011: The Consumer View, a free PDF available to you.

The study covers the consumer’s perceptions of their experience when they shop across different retail channels like: computers, mobile devices, brick and mortar stores, social media, catalogs and customer service representatives.

What we found most interesting?

The stakes are high for retailers to have the right product when customers walk in the door, with pricing and promotions that are the same or better than what shoppers found online.

Now more than ever, retailers (both online and offline), need a deep and comprehensive understanding of the competitive landscape. While gross margins remain a key performance indicator, they are built product by product. The opportunity lies at the product level. It’s time to get granular.

When asked what they expect when they shop online and in stores with the same retailer, 73% said they expect online pricing to be the same as or lower than stores.

Could it be that lower in-store prices could attract – and convert – the foot traffic, thereby changing the current reality that stores are simply “showrooms for online merchants?” Certainly a pricing strategy worth testing.  If nothing more, knowing the comprehensive online competitive landscape is a weighty variable in pricing goods to meet consumer expectations, both in store and online.

Download your copy of Oracle Retail’s Cross-Channel Commerce 2011: The Consumer View now.

Request a demo of the BlackLocus.com Pricing Engine and get a free competitive price analysis and consultation.  See how you can quickly and easily see and monitor your entire online competitive landscape and make educated pricing strategy decisions.