Americans Prefer to Buy from Socially Conscious Companies This Holiday Shopping Season, SAP Study Finds

WALLDORF, Germany, Dec. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- More than half (54 percent) of American consumers consider themselves to be socially conscious shoppers, and nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of respondents prefer to purchase holiday gifts from brands that support specific social causes. These are the findings of a new survey announced by SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today, in which some 1,000 consumers in the United States were asked about their purchasing habits to understand the correlation between their purchases and "brand purpose."

The study also revealed that 60 percent of individuals will avoid buying from brands that support causes they disagree with during holiday shopping.

"We live in an experience economy in which consumers care not just about products but also about a company's purpose, value and global impact," said Alex Atzberger, president, SAP Customer Experience, SAP. "For retailers this can be decisive while competing during the holiday season, when shoppers are spending more than at any other time of the year. Our survey findings indicate that when a company closely connects its purpose to the brand, chances are customers will relate to it on a more personal, human level - which supports customer loyalty and completes the customer experience."

Additional insights from the survey include:

    --  Consumers are willing to pay more for values: More than half of
        respondents said they would spend more for a holiday purchase from a
        brand that strongly supports a cause or represents specific values.
    --  Brand values are second only to price when making purchasing decisions:
        Brand values matter more than a previous positive or negative experience
        with a brand, how user-friendly a Web site is or if the brand has a
        physical store nearby.
    --  Brands must be transparent in business practices: Some 67 percent of
        consumers said transparency in business practices is essential for
        brands to prove authenticity.
    --  Shoppers want their values to align with brands: The values most
        important to shoppers this holiday season are environmental
        sustainability, education and diversity and inclusion.

SAP brings together digital innovation, customer value and trusted relationships between brands and customers. Integrated customer data management, machine learning and microservices power real-time, intelligent customer engagements across sales, customer service, marketing and commerce. SAP® Customer Experience solutions help brands build long-term competitive differentiation and loyalty through positive experiences that last beyond the purchase.

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About SAP
As the cloud company powered by SAP HANA®, SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software, helping companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: 77% of the world's transaction revenue touches an SAP system. Our machine learning, IoT, and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers' businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP gives people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want - without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables more than 413,000 business and public customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people's lives. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

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