Much attention has been paid to Amazon’s recent encroachment on the big-box bricks-and-mortar space, and a recent report from Branding Brand implies that much of the credit belongs to its success in driving loyalty through its Prime service.

The survey of 1,000 adult consumers who shop on Amazon and make the majority of purchases for their households was held in late February. The resulting report contains a bevy of insights into the mind of the Amazon shopper, including their retail habits, preferred platforms and also demographic breakdowns, with a concerted focus on the younger, digital-native shopper.

“Although over 40 percent of those surveyed were not Prime members, those that were enjoy a variety of entertainment add-ons with their membership, as well as easy buying and free shipping,” said Marci Troutman, CEO of SiteMinis. “Retailers first need to understand that shoppers demand in-stock goods, free shipping and frictionless buying as table stakes in the ecommerce world today, and these features alone should not require a membership fee.

“The use of various loyalty membership values should be a top consideration: Gaining redeemable shopping points, exceptional coupons, earlier buying opportunites for new product releases and special co-op entertainment tickets for various events are all ways of gaining consumer loyalty in their purchase cycle over time,” she said. “This is especially true for those brands with bricks-and-mortar locations.

“Retailers should not underestimate the desire for shoppers to go shopping at a location other than their couch!”

Loyalty through Prime
According to the survey, a whopping 60 percent of Amazon shoppers buy using their mobile devices, a product of a years-long campaign from the ecommerce retailer to shift consumer to the platform through features such as frictionless commerce experiences and mobile-conducive services such as Amazon Pantry.

The number of users on a mobile device also closely mirrors the percentage of respondents who were Amazon Prime members, at 58 percent. Having a Prime membership was reported as the top reason survey respondents bought from Amazon (31 percent), closely followed by low prices (29 percent).

Other statistics only confirm the influence of Prime: Of non-Prime members, the main reason 45 percent buy on Amazon is to find lower prices, and 37 percent of non-Prime members think Walmart is less expensive, a significant cohort. It could be implied that Prime customers have grown such brand attachment to the service that they either do not care as much about lower prices as they did before joining Prime, or the service itself touts prices that users come to believe are lower.

The report also focuses on young shoppers, a section of consumer that Amazon is not alone in having interest in: Generation Z is quickly growing in purchasing power, and their habits will come to dictate retailer and ecommerce behavior for some time. Surprisingly, the report claims that 76 percent of digitally native 18-24 year olds make less than half of purchases on Amazon.

The report claims that the group prefers in-store shopping and a seamless buying experience.

Among the group, the leading platform that they use to buy on Amazon is the mobile app, which 35 percent of respondents claimed to use primarily. The rest buy on Amazon through desktop (34 percent) or its mobile-optimized Web site (24 percent).

And, in news that is sure to disappoint many in Amazon’s R&D department, only 1 percent of consumers say they use Amazon Dash Buttons or Alexa to shop.

Amazon’s mobile successes
Amazon has been making strides in developing mobile ecommerce infrastructure in the past few years; expect it to continue into 2017 and beyond. Recently, the company revealed that 32 percent of the 33 million customers who use Amazon Payments do so through a mobile device, meaning that the online retail giant may be making more of a dent in the mobile pay world than previously thought (see story).

But that is not to say bricks-and-mortar institutions are on their deathbed: Amazon was recently forced to lowered its minimum order for free shipping to $35 — the same minimum Walmart instituted on free two-day shipping not three weeks ago, in a move that evinces Amazon’s acknowledgment of Walmart’s enterprising ecommerce tactics (see story).

“Pricing is a critical element for the consumer when making a purchasing decision, and a specific part of how a consumer relates to a brand,” Ms. Troutman said. “Walmart has spent a lot of time and effort to be the low cost provider of goods to the public, and this is a cornerstone of their company philosophy.

“In general, pricing can be a point of conflict between digital and physical purchasing,” she said. “There are many factors that go into the actual purchase moment, like convenience and need.

“Quality of service, the ability to return goods, warranty and actual person-to-person service are important factors as well. In many cases, bricks-and-mortar companies have the opportunity to excel in these areas.”