“Zero” Habits of Highly Effective Comparison Shoppers
Some people are born to shop; others are not. But when it comes to comparison shopping to get the best prices from the most reputable providers for various goods and services, natural born shoppers and non-shoppers have a lot in common. Both are more interested in getting the best quality and value rather than the cheapest price.
In the foreword of a book written for Google by Jim Lecinski, entitled ZMOT: Winning the Zero Moment of Truth, Dina Howell, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi X states, “The Zero Moment of Truth influences which brands make the shopping list, where shoppers choose to buy and with whom they share the results. It’s up to us to…provide the information that shoppers naturally crave, in all the ways they crave it.” In other words, the “Zero Moment Of Truth” refers to the pre-shopping time period when shoppers are digging up more information, from more sources, before they buy.
According to Lecinski, online comparison shopping is one of the top influencers in a consumer’s final decision. On average, 88% of consumers research brands/products before they buy, consulting an average of 10.4 sources, including social networks, internet search engines and traditional advertising. This means that members and prospective members may regularly be comparing everything from annual percentage rates to products and services available from credit unions’ preferred partner companies.
In addition, a March 2013 Forrester Research study found that, whether or not they buy online, shoppers share information with people they know, perform internet searches and watch ads on TV before making a purchasing decision. Thus, it is a good idea to regularly conduct searches to determine what information consumers may be accessing about individual credit unions and their partner companies. Pay particular attention to review-focused websites such as Angie’s List, Yelp, Google, etc., and social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs.
