Recent research has suggested that about 1 in 5 people are loyal to specific brands, and a new study from InMoment [download page] likewise finds 17% of consumers describing themselves as “fiercely loyal” to a handful of brands. But shoppers think it may have been worse in the past, as most feel that they’re equally – or more – loyal to their favorite retailer than their parents are to theirs.
Indeed, more than one-fifth (22%) said they feel they are more loyal to their favorite retailer than their parents are to theirs. Another 61% believe their loyalty is about the same, such that more than 8 in 10 overall think their loyalty is higher than their parent’s.
Youth appear to be the most confident in their increased brand loyalty: almost 3 in 10 feel it’s deeper than that of their parents.
Why might this be? As it turns out, those who feel they’re less loyal than their parents say it’s more a result of greater choice than more information, whereas those who feel their loyalty is greater than their parents point to research over variety as their primary reason.
Notably, youth were the most likely to attribute their greater loyalty compared to their parents to extensive research and experience with brands.
InMoment suggests in its analysis that because consumers have choices, brands need to deliver on their promises in order to engender loyalty from their customers. Even that might require overcoming some hurdles in consumer perception: half of Millennials in the US believe that brands rarely live up to the promises they make.
Other Survey Highlights
- Consumers are slightly more likely to say they’re loyal to brands (26%) than products (21%), though most say that it depends on the brand or product/service in question.
- For the vast majority, love for a brand is something that’s earned over time, rather than being the result of a first impression.
- Most (58%) feel that breaking up with a brand is the result of several very bad experiences, with only about one-third as many (19% overall) claiming that it takes a single experience to turn them off.
- Slightly more than half of respondents said that their latest enjoyable retail experience occurred in a store. Younger respondents were more apt to say it occurred online, though.
- Quality is the top factor that elevates a retail interaction to an experience, per the report. This follows many other pieces of research indicating that quality is the top customer loyalty lever.
About the Data: The results are based on a survey of 1,300 US consumers.
