Customer Experience Research in Decathlon

Scope of cooperation

YourCX team has been working with Decathlon Poland for more than 4 years. During this time, we have jointly started a number of interesting projects covering the experiences of Clients and Decathlon.pl users. Currently the scope of cooperation is based on analytical CX research at the following points of contact with the brand:

• E-commerce platform: Decathlon.pl
• Home and store delivery
• Electronic kiosks in traditional stores
• Product e-reservation processes

Data is collected contextually through both tracking scripts and surveys integrated with the online e-commerce platform, as well as e-mail communication in purchase and delivery processes. We monitor both general trends in terms of brand condition and consumer behavior, as well as specific issues, emotions, and needs. Additionally, we gather information about conversions, paths, history of visits, and actions before and after filling the survey. The whole set of data is then linked to the study of the impact of emotions and experiences on key business indicators. YourCX also handles ongoing processing and analysis of collected data. Observations, conclusions, and recommendations are then presented in monthly and quarterly reports which are sent to a broad group of employees.

Decathlon employees use YourCX’s research in everyday work. Gathered data is needed at all levels of the organization, from operational, related to the ongoing activities, to the strategic, focused on the analysis of general trends. YourCX’s reports reach most of the departments (including communication department, Customer Service and directors of stores), as well as sub-contractors working on the development of Decathlon.pl.

Jakub Gierszyński

E-commerce Director, Decathlon Polska

Decathlon.pl

Within Decathlon.pl e-commerce platform we perform research tailored to the specific areas (homepage, product pages, category pages, search engine, etc.), including the whole purchase process (cart abandonment, post-order satisfaction). General context-related indicators for individual areas allows for constant monitoring of site quality and experiences of new and returning visitors. 

For example, in the case of the internal search engine, we ask about the relevance of search results. On product pages, we gather data on information quality and general UX. In the shopping cart, we ask about the ease of placing an order and, if relevant, reasons of cart abandonment. Some indicators, like Net Promoter Score, are measured at all points of contact. Open answers are also a great source of concrete knowledge about problems and needs and are used by Decathlon Polska employees to verify hypotheses and plan further optimization activities. 

Furthermore, we collect contextual data related to the purpose of visits, goals, needs and current problems. This information complements analytical data and, together with information about the activities of users before, during and after the visit, allows us to fully understand users’ behavior. We also analyze past and future activities to measure the impact of positive and negative experiences on satisfaction and willingness to recommend the brand. We have thus confirmed that people who think that there is something to improve were more likely to make purchases before stumbling upon problems and filling the survey than people who do not see anything to improve. Thus people who do not see anything to improve are more likely to buy, which means we can measure exactly how big is the impact of negative experiences on loyalty and conversion.

Data about Clients

As part of the research conducted at Decathlon.pl, on the basis of declarative data we are building demographic profile of all visitors. Moreover, we collect information about their preferences and sports habits.

This kind of data is used for paths and conversion analysis, and building cohorts, mostly for the study of deferred purchases. For example, Decathlon was interested in the relationships between the possession of a loyalty card and the purchase conversion. An analysis of users’ behavior 10 weeks before and 10 weeks after filling the survey confirmed, that even though those who do not have a card have the highest conversion rate during that visit, card owners are buying more frequently during the following weeks. Such a high level of postponed conversion among loyal customers confirms that taking care of positive experiences, in the long run, is very rewarding.

Delivery and logistics

Decathlon is fully aware that contact with the Customer does not end when the order is placed. The experience of personal delivery and receipt has a key impact on subsequent purchases and the desire to recommend the brand. Courtesy of the supplier, punctuality of the order, Customer Support quality in case of trouble and conformity of the goods with the description all affect the image of the brand. As part of delivery experiences and purchasing processes at Decathlon.pl, we carry out several separate projects tailored to the appropriate shipping methods:

• Courier
• Parcel lockers
• Store pickup
• Returns and complaints
• E-reservation

Thanks to constant monitoring of satisfaction at all these points of contact Decathlon gets a clear view of the logistics condition and customer satisfaction after completing the entire purchasing process. We use data collected for further analysis related to re-visits and repeated purchases at Decathlon.pl to determine which factors have the greatest impact on willingness to return. In addition to that, data is complemented by revenue sensitivity analysis and their real impact on sales. As you can see below, the earlier delivery does not always positively affects the willingness to make more purchases:

The post-delivery experience research allows for continuous monitoring of satisfaction and quick response to any current problems. An example is shown in the chart below, where you can notice the visible increase in late deliveries:

This reported fall in delivery punctuality was also reflected in other indicators used in this research area, including Net Promoter Score (NPS):

Continuous monitoring allows for identifying problems and determining the scale of their impact on satisfaction. With this approach, Decathlon Polska is able to respond reasonably to current problems. Supplementary questions let us understand the factors that have the greatest impact on delivery satisfaction, and open questions give more details on specific problems.

Summary

Our cooperation with Decathlon Polska is very active and close. We prepare monthly and quarterly reports and organize regular meetings. We analyze all open answers, prepare data segmentations, look for solutions to current problems, and we recommend solutions that can contribute positively to improving future experiences.

If you are in interested in our services, regardless of the size of the project, you are welcome to contact us: +48 661 627 620, contact@yourcx.io or via contact form.