Executive Summary

Frictionless commerce, a trend permeating many facets of the customer journey today, leverages technology to improve the retail experience by saving people time and hassle.

What effect is the pandemic having on frictionless commerce trends?

Frictionless commerce was emerging on numerous fronts prior to the pandemic, but shelter-in-place and social distancing measures have significantly increased the demand for retail experiences that minimize time in-store and proximity to other people.

What else is driving the frictionless commerce trend?

The timeless truths of retail are that consumers will always want better prices, selection and convenience. With the internet having already driven major progress on the first two customer needs, attention is now turning to convenience.

What effects do frictionless experiences have on consumer spending?

Streamlined digital transactions, click-and-collect pickup and cashierless checkout contribute to increased shopping frequency and incremental sales.

How important is click-and-collect to ecommerce sales?

According to our latest forecast, click-and-collect will account for 8.2% of US ecommerce sales in 2020, up from our pre-pandemic forecast of 7.6%.

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? This report covers retail innovations driving improved speed and convenience in the shopping experience, and how the pandemic may affect those innovations.

KEY STAT: US click-and-collect ecommerce sales will jump 60.4% to $58.52 billion in 2020.