How do consumers define loyalty?

Loyalty has always meant different things to different people, but taking different perspectives into account could mean millions in sales for consumer goods brands and grocery retailers.

84.51°, the retail data science, insights and media company that helps Kroger and its partners create customer-centric shopping experiences, sought to uncover how consumers define loyalty, which categories they remain loyal to and the differences between brand loyalty and shopper loyalty in its August Consumer Digest.

The study reveals a gap between what consumers say and what they actually do. In fact, shoppers who purchase shelf-stable products claim to be less brand loyal and more likely to switch, but in reality they only buy an average of 1.5% of the brands available to them.

(Related: Survey: Consumers are more loyal to brands with exclusive offers)

Categories where shoppers say they are willing to switch to a cheaper brand include:

• Paper products (62%)
• Durable goods (59%)
• Household cleaning (52%)
• Frozen food (49%)

On the other hand, buyers are significantly less willing to switch in the following cases:

• Baby care (21%)
• Pet food (25%)
• Beauty (30%)
• Products (32%)

When it comes to brands, consumers find that consistency is more important than exclusivity when it comes to how they define loyalty. When asked what it means to be loyal to a particular brand, they responded:

• 60% said that the brand they buy most often is
• 16% said that the brand they exclusively buy
• 12% said it was the brand they wanted to buy.
• 12% said it was their preferred brand, but they were willing to try others.

Good value for money (84%) and a trusted brand (56%) were the most important factors for brand loyalty, while consistent quality (72%) and easy accessibility (65%) were the most important characteristics consumers expected from brands.

(Read more: How the Rx factor is evolving in customer loyalty in retail)

When asked about retailer loyalty, the categories that most influence retailer preference are fruit, vegetables (78%), delicatessen/meat/fish (75%) and pet food (68%). The most important factors that influence shoppers to choose a grocer include low everyday prices (60%), good sales/promotions (49%) and convenient location (48%).

The full report can be found here.