The consumer data give and take

Article

The consumer data give and take

A study by Deloitte and Ahold Delhaize into European attitudes on the use of consumer data by grocers

European consumers trust grocery retailers with their personal data more than non-grocery retailers, financial institutions, and digital and social media platforms. But they have high expectations about transparency, choice, and control over their data.

Executive summary

The introduction of loyalty programmes, the growth of online shopping and digital marketing are just some of the influences that have changed the face of retail. Retailers now have vast amounts of consumer data at their disposal and efforts are being made by leading grocers to make much greater use of it—for the benefit of consumers, themselves and their partners. As this trend accelerates and as consumers become more data-savvy, important questions such as how customers feel about their data being used and what types of services would consumers be willing to share their data for, are starting to emerge.

The report, The consumer data give and take, by Deloitte Global and Ahold Delhaize, a leading global grocery retail group, sets out the findings from an online survey across 15 countries and 15,000 respondents into European attitudes on the use of consumer data by organisations and grocery retailers in particular. The objective is to stimulate a wide-ranging discussion around data ethics, the responsibilities of companies and their responses to the regulation of personal data in line with consumer expectations. This discussion will be critical to the shaping of both regulation and consumer expectations.

The consumer data give and take

Key findings

  • In Switzerland, 20% of respondents were willing to share their personal data, less willing than those in Greece (35%), Ireland (27%) and France (26%), but more willing than the Finnish (8%), Germans (15%) and Dutch (16%).
  • Grocery retailers are seen as highly trustworthy and there is above-average willingness to share data with them—more so than for non-grocery retailers, financial institutions, digital platforms and social media platforms. The only other organisations consumers trust more with their data are medical services and government institutions.
  • The majority of Swiss consumers, (80%) are satisfied with the use of their personal data by grocery retailers, similar to those in Italy (81%) and Belgium (79%).
  • Age and current online behaviour are the two parameters that have the strongest correlations to consumer data perceptions. There is a greater willingness to share personal data among younger consumers and those who shop online more frequently.
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