Millennial disruption:
How the largest generation
since the boomers is
transforming ecommerce

The largest generation since the Baby Boomers, a full third of the U.S. population, is entering its prime shopping years, which means it’s showtime for millennials -- and go-time for retailers. Tech-savvy, smartphone-devoted, social platform-connected millennial shoppers are leading the charge toward an ecommerce revolution, spending more money online in a given year than any other age group.
$600B
spent annually
$1.4T
annual spend by 2020
30%
of all retail sales in the United States alone
$2,000
Amount the average millennial spends yearly on digital retail sites
39%
of millennials say they interact more with their smartphones than any human (including significant others, parents, friends, children, or co-workers)
87%
have their phones by their side every second of the day
80%
of millennials sleep next to their cellphones
And that’s
how they’re
connecting
to the
internet.
89%
use smartphones to connect (vs. 75% on laptops, 45% on tablets, and 37% on desktops)
45%
say they spend at least an hour a day browsing ecommerce sites
13%
of men
20%
of women
spend more than 2 hours shopping online every day
51%
of millennial purchases are made online
73%
say they spend at least an hour a day browsing ecommerce sites
63%
say they've bought an item on their smartphone
33%
of men
40%
of women
answered yes when asked if they agree with this statement:
“I would buy everything online if I could”
50%
of millennials have downloaded a mobile shopping app on their smartphone
60%
switch from device to device depending on where they are and what they’re doing
68%
expect an experience that’s both integrated and seamless regardless of channel
Price has the greatest influence on millennials' buying decisions above all other factors, including quality, brand, store, and availability.
70%
scour the internet for promo codes before buying anything online
50%
of women
44%
of men
follow their favorite brands on Facebook and Twitter for notifications of sales and specials
47%
abandon shopping carts to trigger retargeting deals
26%
use fake birthdays
36%
use multiple email addresses
78%
of millennials are more likely to choose a brand that offers a loyalty or rewards program over a brand that doesn’t
75%
of 18- to 24-year-olds
77%
of 25- to 34-year-olds
would consider joining a fee-based rewards program if their favorite retailer offered one
41%
will pay for an excellent customer experience, including personalized engagement across all touchpoints
60%
will provide details for an excellent customer experience, including personalized engagement across all touchpoints
30%
who said no to data sharing would change their mind in the face of an incentive offer
Only
25%
strongly agree that online merchants will keep their payment details safe
More than 1/3
prefer alternative payments (e.g., PayPal) for increased security
95%
of those who use alternative payments expect their usage to stay constant or increase in the next 12 months
Sources >∨
(1) Pew Research Center
(2) Blackhawk Engagement Solutions
(3) BI Intelligence
(4) Accenture
(5) PSF Web
(6) Social Lens Research
(7) Bank of America
(8) Think with Google
(9) Bank of America
(10) Blackhawk Engagement
(11) ULI Report
(12) ComScore
(13) YPulse
(14) Goldman Sachs
(15) eMarketer
(16) Forbes
(17) Accenture
(18) Blackhawk Engagement
(19) Mindshare
(20) eMarketer
(21) DMNews
(22) Aimia.com
(23) LoyaltyOne
(24) Mintel
(25) ACI Worldwide
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