concludes with a list of e-commerce features that should meet the needs of emotional shoppers.
A few years ago,
someone prophesised that workplace offices wouldn’t need paper in the future. The prophecy didn’t ‘come to pass’ though, largely because it overlooked some significant human emotions.
One such, was the emotional need for safety and security, which was undermined apparently by new paper-less procedures. Another was the emotional satisfaction that we all derive from manipulating tangible objects, which was also undermined by the sudden lack of paper.
Yes, paper-less working was one of those ‘flights of fancy’ often indulged-in by visionaries at the forefront of exciting new technologies. These ‘flights’ are forgivable because enthusiasm, even misguided enthusiasm, is a valuable resource in our sceptical world.
I must admit, when I first heard about online shopping, I was more sceptical than enthusiastic. ‘Assistant-less shops’ seemed just a little too much like ‘paper-less offices’. Yet, the online shopping revolution has taken hold, to the extent now that some very big retailers see the Internet as a viable and important selling channel.
Why was I, along with so many other potential sh