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Why consumers are not shouting out for voice shopping yet
The latest research shows that Americans are not using voice shopping in large numbers and that many are hesitant, even hostile to the concept. Still, it could yet become a major new sales channel for online commerce.
Have you ordered anything from Amazon by simply talking to your Alexa or Echo? Don’t feel bad if you haven’t, because the latest analysis (“The Majority of US Adults Have No Interest in Voice Shopping”) from the marketing research firm eMarketer shows that fewer than 1 in 10% of all Americans have ever engaged in “voice shopping.” And in fact, just 2% of U.S. consumers report doing so at present on a regular basis. In fact, if you dig into their summary findings, as shown in Figure 1 (How Interested Are US Adults in Voice Shopping?) below, there are some very interesting insights that point to a very difficult road ahead for Amazon and other companies banking on the growth of voice shopping. However, there are also signs in eMarketer’s findings that point towards the potential for ordering by speaking to become an important new shopping channel moving forward. We explore both ends of the argument over the future of voice shopping in this article to provide insights for readers as to how and where vocal shopping can indeed fit into today’s fast-changing marketing mix.
Figure 1
The Voice Shopping Conundrum
At first glance, that chart would not seem very friendly to marketers. Not only has there been light penetration to date — less than 2% of Americans being regular voice shoppers and 7% more ever having used their Amazon Alexa or Echo to make a purchase, there is not a great deal of receptivity among consumers as to the vision of voice shopping that Amazon has painted as an important part of the future of the way we will shop:
