Goodbye big-box? Curbside pickup, contactless payment options fueling rise of small businesses

NEW YORK — The next trend in New Year’s resolutions may have you ditching big-box stores, as most Americans say they want to put more of their money towards small businesses in 2022.

A survey of 2,000 adults found that since the pandemic began in March 2020, 76 percent have made an effort to support local small businesses.

Shopping big isn’t always better

Small Business ResolutionsThe average person has regularly shopped with four small businesses outside of the food and beverage industry within the past year.

Three in five people believe small businesses have several advantages over larger big-box stores.

Seven in 10 add they’ve been able to find items at small businesses that they struggle to find in larger stores – particularly homemade goods (55%), fashion items and jewelry (40%), toys (36%), wellness products (36%), and certain books (33%).

Commissioned by GoDaddy and conducted by OnePoll, the survey revealed both Gen-Z (54%) and millennial (60%) respondents couldn’t care less about stepping foot in a large chain store ever again.

Meanwhile, less than half of Gen-X (42%) and only 18 percent of boomers say avoiding big-box stores is their goal for this year.

The evolution of small businesses

Small Business ResolutionsThe things respondents find the most appealing about small businesses are having interesting items for sale (49%) and the store’s atmosphere (44%).

However, many people believe small businesses have a long way to go. Twenty-nine percent think the biggest hurdle when shopping small is dealing with limited store hours.

Likewise, 20 percent say they struggle to find new small businesses and 18 percent dislike dealing with shipping costs when shopping from small stores online.

Respondents have seen many small businesses struggle throughout the pandemic while seeing how others remained resilient by keeping up with the times.

Consumers appreciated how small, local shops evolved during the pandemic by including curbside pickup options (41%), contactless payment options (41%), and having an online store (36%).

Four in five millennials (82%) say they are more likely to purchase from a small business where they can place their order for delivery or pick up, while most baby boomers (52%) would not.

“There’s no questioning the benefits of shopping locally,” says Melissa Schneider, vice president of marketing and global operations at GoDaddy, in a statement. “Not only are you supporting someone who is passionate about what they do, but there is also a sense of care and convenience that often can’t be seen in bigger chain stores.”

Confident shoppers know what they want

While 63 percent feel more confident about what they buy from local businesses, 61 percent will still shop from big-box competitors if they can’t find what they’re looking for in smaller stores.

Meanwhile, 68 percent would shop more from small businesses if they could purchase items online.

“Offering your goods or services online is the best way to keep people coming in through the doors, which might seem counterintuitive at first, but it really acts as a superpower,” Schneider adds. “Having an online storefront or online payment options, along with offering contactless payment options in-person, are all critical to consumers today.”

WHAT DO LOCAL SHOPPERS WANT POST-PANDEMIC?

  1. Contactless payment options 37%
  2. Curbside pickup 37%
  3. Online stores 37%
  4. Self-checkout 34%
  5. Virtual/digital loyalty cards 30%
  6. Mobile apps 30%
  7. Ordering ahead online 26%
  8. QR code menus 23%

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *