Alexa Keeps Consumers Sticky – And Spending

A new study has revealed that Alexa users are buying more, which means that its voice technology is turning into a major marketing platform for consumer brands.

CNBC reported that the study, conducted by Linc Global and Rakuten, found that Amazon Echo owners increased their purchases of consumer products, such as diapers, by 13.5 percent in the third quarter of 2017, up from the 7.5 percent jump seen in the second quarter of this year.

In addition, the companies saw a 60 percent upsell rate, which means that consumers bought more products from the same brand after their Echo purchase.

“This study indicates that voice search has a positive impact on sales of standardized products,” James Lee, an analyst at Mizuho Securities, wrote in a note published Wednesday.

But according to Lee, the biggest reveal from the study is how Alexa is rapidly becoming a marketing platform for many consumer brands. Pampers diapers, for example, also has an Alexa app that recommends re-orders of previous purchases or new products based on a user’s past shopping history.

Amazon is also testing a new service that would let customers order products from the consumer brand’s Alexa app and pick up at local retailers, according to the Mizuho note.

“Alexa’s voice platform provides a powerful marketing channel for brands to sell direct,” Lee wrote in the note.