Consumer Getting Savvier when It Comes to Shopping

It appears that the prospect of rising prices is having what one might call a positive effect on consumers, who are now less inclined to go on shopping sprees but more likely to make overall better and more productive purchase choices.

On the industry of today, there are several factors that the bulk of the consumer market can no longer stay ignorant of, at least in the US.

For one, while the economic recession has come and passed, its aftereffects are still making themselves felt everywhere, at least to some extent, and might cause price increases in the next months.

Additionally, energy prices have been going up, meaning that products with high degrees of power efficiency are getting more and more appealing.

71 percent of the respondents to a survey conducted by Deloitte have this worry in mind, while 43 percent don't really feel like the recession went away at all.

Granted, almost half of all households with income of $100,000 or more are fairly confident in the economy, although one can reason that people with such money probably didn't see the worst of things anyway.

Sure enough, only 24% of households with income of under $100,000 share the above opinion.

All in all, 74 percent of Americans are concerned by higher prices and expect this to make them think twice about many purchases, leading to lower spendings in the months to come.

"The recession has redefined the consumer's relationship with retailers, and social and mobile applications have accelerated this change," said Alison Paul, vice chairman and U.S. retail sector leader, Deloitte LLP.

"Consumers are making more deliberate, informed decisions using a variety of tools and data. This presents a challenge and an opportunity for retailers to enhance both the in-store and online experience -- knitting those together in a compelling way to build shopper loyalty."