Nearly 50% of the U.S. population is described as always on, always present, and always connected, with the label always-on connected consumers (AOCCs Show moreNearly 50% of the U.S. population is described as always on, always present, and always connected, with the label always-on connected consumers (AOCCs) emerging as one of the most popular in practice. This consumer group is a powerful and influential part of the U.S. economy that will continue to grow and influence retailing even more than it does today. To better understand the shopping behavior of this group, we interviewed 40 hyper-digital men and women age 18 and 65 and collected more than 200 stories about their positive and negative shopping experiences. The findings describe who these consumers are and why relevant marketing communication matters. Seven dynamic shopping/shopper identities are also identified, raising questions about traditional customer segmentation using profiles and personas. Last, three contradictions voiced around privacy, online reviews, and retailer hospitality are discussed. Together, the study’s six findings have implications for retail executives as they continue to shift marketing dollars away from traditional efforts and toward digital ones to more efficiently target and reach consumers and invest in new growth strategies and digital initiatives. They also provide insights for new academic research. Keywords: always-on connected consumer (AOCC), retail, retailing, online shopping, digital commerce, e-commerce, shopping, shopping behavior, digital marketing, customer engagement, omni-channel, marketing relevance, consumer behavior, dynamic shopping/shopper identities, marketing communication, customer segmentation Show less
