Whether it’s true or not, it certainly can feel like Amazon is everywhere these days, even in outer space. And it’s not surprising, given the omnipresence of the retail giant on the internet, and the availability of just about any product you could ever need or think of on its platform.
But with the burgeoning rise of major online retail competition, such as Walmart and Target, CivicScience decided to take a quick look at just who might be the non-Prime using consumer.
As the data show, just over one-quarter of the Gen Pop (26%) has never been an Amazon Prime member, while another 10% used to be.
Breaking down non-Prime users by demographic categories reveals several interesting trends. Subscribers and non-subscribers demonstrate relatively similar numbers across gender, residential status, and residential area, though former Prime subscribers are more likely than the other two groups to still be living with family members.
The data, however, begins to change more significantly when compared against income and age.
Non-prime members tend to have lower household incomes and over-index in the over 55 population. Comfort with and trust in online platforms may be behind these numbers.
Also marking a divide among membership rates is the brand versus price sensitivity index. The more concerned about price, the more likely a consumer is to not be subscribed to Amazon Prime.
Social media may also be influencing subscriber rates. Non-prime subscribers are significantly much more likely to not be influenced by social media at all when purchasing electronics, as compared to current subscribers.
Interestingly, when looking at the pandemic’s impact on job status, non-members and members demonstrate fairly similar job changes due to the pandemic. One difference is that former Prime members are more likely than the other two groups to have experienced reduced hours or pay over the last year or so.
But cost savings aren’t the only factor at play in Prime memberships: comfort in public spaces, especially with the rise of the Delta variant may also be impacting rates of membership.
Non-subscribers are significantly more likely to be comfortable out in public spaces currently, which may imply they do most of their shopping in-person, negating the primary benefit of Prime.
Speaking of shopping in person, non-Prime members are less likely to have a favorable opinion of shopping at Target, as compared to subscribers. When compared with Walmart, non-Prime subscribers demonstrate strikingly similar favorability to both subscribers and former subscribers.
As the Delta variant and other aspects of the pandemic continue to alter comfort in public spaces and related restrictions, CivicScience will continue to keep an eye on how these numbers may change.
