News & Topics
Infographic: Black Friday in the U.S.
Black Friday refers to the day after Thanksgiving and is symbolically seen as the start of the critical holiday shopping season. The importance of Black Friday has grown globally over the last few years and yet the scale and impact of the event continues to reach record highs. Stores offer big discounts on electronics, toys, and other gifts and online sales, boosted during the pandemic, offer great deals at the click of a button. To view Black Friday from a consumer perspective Rakuten Insight asked 13,000 consumers aged 16+, via their US proprietary panel, about their plans to shop during the holidays sales.
Report: Understanding the Post-Pandemic Traveller
Since early 2020, the global pandemic fundamentally changed the world–the way we live, work, travel and consume. Facing lockdowns and subsequent restrictions to leisure activities, the travel industry was arguably one of the most impacted sectors. Consumers had to put their usual travel plans on hold until such time when travel became possible. Now that most countries have opened up again and relative freedom of movement restored, Rakuten Insight decided to explore how people view travel and what are their upcoming travel plans?
The Impact of Data Ecosystems on the Market Research Sector
Originally published on Research-live.com, 20th October 2022. In recent years, data ecosystems have gained in strength. The pandemic has sped up the influence of activities such as online shopping, digital wallets, content streaming, food deliveries and even digital healthcare. The world of inter-connected sets of services across multiple industry sectors delivered in an integrated customer experience is now here to stay.
2022 Davis Cup by Rakuten
Rakuten is the Global Presenting Partner and Global Innovation and Entertainment Partner of the Davis Cup, the World Cup of Tennis. This year, the Davis Cup by Rakuten will take place across venues in Europe in Italy, Scotland, Germany, and Spain.
Gen Z shopping behaviour and brand preferences
Originally published by Rakuten Europe, 13th September 2022. Gen Z has taken the world by storm – at least the digital world. But what do we know of Gen Z? A term applied by many demographic researchers, and according to Pew Research Center, Generation Z (in short: Gen Z) consists of people born between 1997 and 2012. Gen Z follows Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) and precedes Generation Alpha.[1]
Japan: Feeling the squeeze!
Japan, along with other global markets, is feeling the effects of post-pandemic inflation this summer. So Rakuten Insight Japan collected data from 1,000 adults between the ages of 20 and 69 to gauge the impact of price increases on their lifestyles. And the impact is clear. About 80% of respondents revealed that they have recently observed price increases for food, with an average 14,673 yen spike in monthly household expenditure.
Just Launched: Rakuten Insight Panel Book
For 25 years, Rakuten Insight Global has been at the forefront of consumer market research data collection. By combining our 1st party data with the highest levels of quality assurance processes, Rakuten Insight Global has remained our clients’ trusted research partner for Asia, US & Beyond.
Report: Online shopping – what’s changed?
In June 2022, Rakuten Insight Global interviewed over 134,000 adults 16+ years old across our 13 proprietary panels to find out how their online shopping and digital spending behaviours have changed compared to the same period last year.
ParcelMonitor.com: What Consumers Truly Think of Returns
Originally published on Parcelmonitor.com, 9th of June 2022. Returns are a necessary evil in the world of e-commerce retail. While frequent returns can adversely impact your profit margins, they also serve as a great opportunity to boost customer loyalty if handled correctly. With over $368 billion in sales lost to returns last year, developing and enforcing a comprehensive returns policy is no longer something that retailers can put on the back burner.
2022 Impact of COVID-19 on Consumer Behaviour
More than two years on from the COVID outbreak in spring 2020, we look at how consumer behaviour changed during the pandemic and whether this is likely to continue as restrictions ease.
ParcelMonitor.com: Effect of Estimated Delivery Date on Customer Satisfaction
Originally published on Parcelmonitor.com, 2nd of March 2022. For many online customers, the availability of a clear, accurate estimated delivery date (EDD) is a make-or-break factor between conversion and an abandoned cart. Regardless of the purchase or where they are based, EDD is something shoppers expect to see at the checkout page alongside the total price of their items.
Report: What REALLY matters when deciding between two brands
As the world careers towards environmental disaster while trust in big corporations and authority has reached new lows, corporations worldwide have tried to reflect these concerns in product positioning and for some the very substance of the products they sell. Brand purpose has become king. Survey after survey appears to confirm that this is something that consumers (especially the enormous bucket that comprises the moving target ‘millennials’), really want. But is it as simple as that?
United States Panel Now Available
Starting from January 2022, our United States panel is available alongside our 12 proprietary panels in key Asian markets.
Report: Plant-based food alternatives
This story is part of our series on plant-based food alternatives. An infographic is available here. Have you ever consumed plant-based alternatives to animal-based food products? What about lab-grown meat, would you eat it once available? That’s what our new report on plant-based alternatives aimed to find out from consumers across our 13 proprietary panels.
Infographic: Plant-based food alternatives – Future or Present?
The plant-based food revolution is happening and seems to be here to stay. The latest survey from Rakuten Insight indicates that many of our panelists have tried plant-based alternatives, and some products have already been accepted into diets across our panel markets, such as milk, cheese & meats. Most consumers regularly consume these products several times a week or several times a month.
ParcelMonitor.com: Could Free Shipping Be the Key to Higher Customer Retention?
Originally published on Parcelmonitor.com, 16th December 2021. Just like many other regions in the world, Southeast Asia’s e-commerce growth took off at an accelerated pace in 2020. Since the pandemic onset, around 70 million additional people have shopped online across countries in Southeast Asia. The number is expected to grow five times in the next five years.
ParcelMonitor.com: Free shipping on consumers purchasing decisions
Originally published on Parcelmonitor.com, 15th November 2021. The word “free” has a timeless appeal. This is also true of the phrase “free shipping” — at least for anyone who shops online frequently. Free shipping has consistently been proven to be one of the top purchasing factors among millennials. But how can free shipping influence consumers’ purchase decisions?
India: Putting the Emotion into Electric Vehicles
The Electric Vehicle market is anticipated to become a key future battleground with huge potential for growth. Rakuten Insight conducted a survey in India, with the aim to understand consumer awareness, attitudes and expectations from Electric Vehicles.
Snapshot: Retail Insights
In normal times, understanding the retail landscape across different markets is challenging enough, let alone during a pandemic. COVID-19 has impacted consumers as well as researchers, trying to monitor behaviour across the globe, from their homes. It is now more tempting than ever to make sense of data through one’s own lens.
Rakuten Optimism 2021 Business Conference (Virtual)
This fall, Rakuten’s biggest-ever virtual business conference is going live. On October 12 and 13, Rakuten Optimism 2021 will connect participants from Japan and around the world with some of the world’s top luminaries and business leaders to reflect on the myriad ways in which the world is changing around us, and how our lives can be enriched as a result.
ParcelMonitor.com: The E-Commerce Logistics Race South East Asia
Originally published on Parcelmonitor.com, 29th July 2021. Southeast Asia has a booming e-commerce market. In 2020, the region’s e-commerce sector e-commerce grew by 35.2%, adding 40 million new Internet users in 2020 resulting in over 70% of the region’s population browsing the Internet. The region’s e-commerce growth also shows no signs of slowing with a forecasted growth of 14.3% this year.