Dive Brief:
- Nearly half — 48% — of consumers say they refuse to shop with brands online that fail to meet their expectations, according to a survey of 28,000 consumers across 17 countries released Thursday by VML. That number is down from 51% last year.
- Another 41% say they regularly abandon purchases due to frustrating digital shopping experiences, though this is down from 45% last year.
- Nearly half of consumers — 45% — report that standard features like remembering user preferences are still missing from most sites, and 46% say they are frustrated by having to navigate across multiple apps or sites to complete basic tasks.
Dive Insight:
Consumers’ willingness to walk away after a poor digital experience is softening, but many still remain unhappy with the state of online CX — and they believe it’s gotten worse over time.
A majority of consumers say platforms across the web are prioritizing their own bottom line over the user experience, according to the VML survey. Nearly half — 47% — say they have seen the platforms they used to love become worse over time.
Other research has corroborated that consumers are seeing a downtick in the quality of digital experiences. The American Customer Satisfaction Index found that in the second quarter of 2026, customer satisfaction with U.S. businesses saw its sharpest decline since the COVID-19 pandemic. Customer complaints also reached an all-time high, but growing customer dissatisfaction has yet to result in comparable intentions for disloyalty.
Customers feel trapped despite their dissatisfaction, according to Forrest Morgeson, associate professor of marketing at Michigan State University and director of research emeritus at ACSI. A customer may be mad at Amazon’s shopping experience, but that doesn’t mean they will stop using the retailer.
“The reality for a lot of consumers is that [leaving] is something they can't afford,” Morgeson told CX Dive last month. “There are other websites out there that probably sell the same thing, but Amazon is so price competitive that for a lot of consumers leaving Amazon really isn't an option.”
The VML survey found a similar sentiment, with nearly half — 46% — of respondents saying there are no good alternatives even when they feel like the experience is getting worse.
