Products

Insider Intelligence delivers leading-edge research to clients in a variety of forms, including full-length reports and data visualizations to equip you with actionable takeaways for better business decisions.
Reports
In-depth analysis, benchmarks and shorter spotlights on digital trends.
Learn More
Forecasts
Interactive projections with 10k+ metrics on market trends, & consumer behavior.
Learn More
Charts
Proprietary data and over 3,000 third-party sources about the most important topics.
Learn More
Industry KPIs
Industry benchmarks for the most important KPIs in digital marketing, advertising, retail and ecommerce.
Learn More
Briefings
Client-only email newsletters with analysis and takeaways from the daily news.
Learn More
Analyst Access Program
Exclusive time with the thought leaders who craft our research.
Learn More

About Insider Intelligence

Our goal at Insider Intelligence is to unlock digital opportunities for our clients with the world’s most trusted forecasts, analysis, and benchmarks. Spanning five core coverage areas and dozens of industries, our research on digital transformation is exhaustive.
Our Story
Learn more about our mission and how Insider Intelligence came to be.
Learn More
Methodology
Rigorous proprietary data vetting strips biases and produces superior insights.
Learn More
Our People
Take a look into our corporate culture and view our open roles.
Join the Team
Contact Us
Speak to a member of our team to learn more about Insider Intelligence.
Contact Us
Newsroom
See our latest press releases, news articles or download our press kit.
Learn More
Advertising & Sponsorship Opportunities
Reach an engaged audience of decision-makers.
Learn More
Events
Browse our upcoming and past webinars and other events.
Learn More
Podcasts
Tune in to eMarketer's daily, weekly, and monthly podcasts.
Learn More

What Makes Food Shoppers Spend More?

Product origins are more important than organics, and most don't want to pay for delivery

The US economy is in relatively good shape when looking at measures like unemployment (it's down) and gross domestic product (it's up), but consumers are still feeling financial pressures. According to a Q1 2018 study by market researcher IRI, 47% of US internet users said they are making sacrifices to make ends meet. That's down from 50% in Q1 2017, but it's still a sizeable percentage. 

Even so, one-quarter of respondents plan to buy more premium brands in the next six months. This intent was stronger with higher-income brackets, as well as with retirees and seniors.

When asked what they would be willing to pay more for, benefits beyond basic nutrition had the most interest (36%), followed by natural or organic products (29%). Paying extra for home delivery and in-store pickup of online orders were less popular.

Not surprisingly, consumers with household incomes over $100,000 were more willing to pay more for all of these features. Older millennials, those ages 29 to 37, were most willing to pay a premium for organics, at 41%. But millennials ages 18 to 28 (39%) and Gen Xers (37%) were also less resistant than older generations. Younger millennials were much more likely than older age groups to pay a premium for home delivery of goods bought online: 36% compared with 20% of older millennials and Gen Xers. 

A May 2018 survey by Morning Consult dug deeper and asked US internet users which factors would make them spend 50 cents extra on a grocery item that cost $5. The leading motivator (cited by 45% of respondents) was one of the most simple: a brand that shoppers know and like. Brand names mattered most for soda, coffee and tea.

Origins were more important than organics: 37% of respondents would pay more for a product made in the US, and 32% would do so for a product made locally. Roughly one-quarter would pay extra for an organic item. A majority of those surveyed wouldn't spend 50 cents more on a small purchase under any circumstance.

Whether they caused respondents to spend more or not, products labeled "fresh" (81%) and "farm-fresh" (72%) were the two most appealing claims to consumers. Interestingly, 78% of Trump supporters said "sourced from American farmers" held appeal, compared with 68% of Clinton voters. 

As in the IRI study and an earlier survey from Coresight Research, consumers are resistant to paying for grocery delivery. Most (51%) said they would not do so, while 29% would be willing to pay $1 to $5. However, shoppers who prefer the convenience of buying groceries online are more willing to pay extra for the service. Among the one-third who had bought food and beverages digitally in the past, only 35% wouldn’t pay for delivery, while 32% would pay $1 to $5 and 23% would pay $6 to $10. 

According to Morning Consult, most who hadn't bought groceries online (65%) have no desire to shop for food via digital channels. Just over one-fifth had interest, but for whatever reasons hadn’t shopped that way yet.