Introduction
As the e-commerce industry grows and technologies such as smart phones, laptops, and tablet devices make the industry more accessible, consumers are increasingly shopping in non-touch environments (Office for National Statistics, 2020). For some consumers, those known as high need-for-touch (high-NFT) consumers, sensory interactivity with products is an important mechanism in developing their purchasing confidence (Holbrook and Hirschman, 1982; de Vries et al., 2018; Peck, Barger and Webb, 2013).
In brick-and-mortar stores, consumers can assess products’ salient qualities such as their texture, design, weight, scale, capacity, and build quality, to learn whether a product meets their needs (Peck, Barger and Webb, 2013). For autotelic high-NFT consumers, purchasing products with a fashionable design or texture may meet their hedonic needs, whereas for their instrumental high-NFT counterparts, purchasing a product with a correct scale, capacity, and build quality may help them to solve a problem (Holbrook and Hirschman, 1982). Unfortunately, assessing these salient qualities when browsing online is a challenge, as the consumer is unable to touch the product. For many high-NFT consumers, this barrier to touch may cause them to forgo the online purchase altogether (Peck and Childers, 2003).
Online marketplaces such as Etsy, Not on the High Street, and Shopify, have contributed to the growth of the e-commerce industry by increasing access to selling online (Mathradas, 2021). Small retailers no longer need to own brick-and-mortar stores, reducing overhead costs such as rent and staffing. However, these small retailers risk losing out on vital transactions, unless their online shopping experiences provide confidence to high-NFT consumers (Peck and Childers, 2003).In this final year project on the MA Digital Media Practice programme, I have undertaken a process of theoretical, market, and client research to understand how e-retailers may already be accommodating for high-NFT consumers. This research has then culminated in the development of a prototype to demonstrate how a small e-retailer called Blossom and Easel could adapt their current mobile experience to better provide confidence to high-NFT consumers. It is intended that this prototype could be presented as a proof-of-concept presentation to e-retailers at trade shows, business conferences, and serve as part of a proposal for PhD research.Â
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