Our second annual study of US banking consumers reveals the key characteristics that make each generation’s customer journey unique. Banks can tailor their acquisition and retention strategies accordingly.

Walmart’s advertising business gets a boost: The retailer closed its Vizio acquisition, giving it inroads into the lucrative CTV market.

High-income consumers are more likely to discover new brands or products in-store, but they typically make the final purchase online.

TikTok Shop leans on top brands, live shopping to boost holiday sales: The platform will feature exclusive products from brands like Benefit Cosmetics and celebrity-led livestreams alongside Cyber Five discounts.

TV is transforming into a retail platform: Shoppable media drives real-time purchasing, with US consumers spending $290 annually on TV-inspired products.

Google and Amazon enhance visual search capabilities to speed up the path to purchase: As more shoppers rely on the tool, both companies see an opportunity to make the shopping experience faster, simpler, and more relevant.

Commerce video ads drive sales growth: 70% of advertisers use the format, says IAB report, but consumers find the ads too short.

Gen Z’s complicated path to purchase leans heavily on digital platforms and channels. But offline resources still play a key role.

Amazon tests removing product reviews and ratings from search: The retailer claims it will enhance the browsing experience, but it creates friction for the majority of shoppers who rely on customer feedback.

Gauging the influence of digital on the shopper's journey.

Instacart launches new ad formats to help CPGs drive impulse purchases: The delivery platform will roll out shoppable recipes, occasions, and bundles to facilitate discovery and boost brand engagement.

At $22.25 billion, digital advertising is advancing unabated in Latin America this year. Double-digit gains in video and retail media ad spending, as well as improving economic conditions in Brazil and Mexico, will help take the regional market to new heights. Here are the latest trends you need to know.

TikTok proves social search is here to stay: Its new image search function capitalizes on a shift from traditional discovery methods.

Nearly half of retail CFOs plan to leverage automation and AI to optimize costs in 2024. Online resale may have the most to gain in the short term, thanks to the opportunity to address key operational challenges and customer pain points involved with selling secondhand goods online.

38.5% of US clothing buyers say they discover brands and products by browsing in-store, according to our November 2023 Consumer Path to Purchase survey.

Over half (51%) of Gen Z consumers worldwide use social media to look up a brand versus 45% who turn to search engines, per GWI Core data from 2023.

Gen Z consumers are tech-savvy digital natives that feel more comfortable searching for products on social platforms like TikTok over traditional search engines like Google. Even when they’re shopping in-store, they employ technology to help them, browsing mobile phones and using self-checkout to make the shopping experience more seamless.

Sometimes, consumers don’t behave how we expect. Despite their digital-native status, Gen Zers still shop in-store, while baby boomers are all about new-kid-on-the-block Temu. And though they’re still mostly children, Gen Alphas are making their mark on the retail landscape.

Gen Zers’ habits diverge from other generations’ in the early stages of the customer journey. Our inaugural survey of banking consumers in Canada spotlights the differences to help banks drive conversions.

While in-store is the No. 1 way Gen Z discovers clothing, 39.0% of US Gen Z clothing buyers have used social media to discover new apparel brands or products over the last six months, according to our September 2023 survey.