Although 85 percent of U.S. adult shoppers say reading a product package helps them make in-store purchase decisions, 78 percent have wanted additional information about a product after reading a product’s package, according to a study conducted online this month by Harris Poll and commissioned by Digimarc Corporation. Especially notable for retailers, these same shoppers report they are more likely to research and buy online when they cannot readily find the product details they desire (75 percent). The need for additional product information is even higher (87 percent) among millennials, compared to people aged 35 or older.

At the same time, a majority (65 percent) of smartphone owners are willing to spend less than a minute researching a product on their smartphone while in the retail store aisle. This creates an imperative for retailers and brands to deliver useful information to shoppers quickly and easily. The Digimarc Barcode platform is designed to provide a simple-to-use but powerful way to engage directly with consumers.

“Shoppers who can’t quickly find the information they need to make a purchase decision are likely to put a product right back on the shelf,” says Larry Logan, chief marketing officer at Digimarc. “Retailers and brands can increase the chances of completing a sale by delivering instant information to a shopper’s smartphone. Addressing this need, the Digimarc Barcode platform gives packages the ability to deliver much richer, more complete product information directly to the shopper at the critical moment of decision.”

The most common information shoppers seek after reading a product’s package are price comparisons (45 percent), reviews or ratings (43 percent), special offers or coupons (40 percent) and ingredients or nutritional information (34 percent) such as caffeine content. Consumers also expressed interest in details about which country a product was manufactured in, technical specifications and similar information.

Inadequate product information on the package can mean lost sales for brick-and-mortar retailers, and the survey reveals that store employees aren’t an adequate substitute. Sixty percent of smartphone owners say if they can’t find information on their smartphone, live help can be difficult to find in store, which often necessitates a do-it-yourself approach for tech savvy shoppers.

“Smartphones are ubiquitous among consumers because they’ve become an indispensable tool for everyday tasks, including shopping,” adds Logan. “The latest generation of shoppers, having grown up in a mobile world, expect more information and want it to be at their fingertips at all times. But expecting shoppers to type in web addresses or do keyword searches while in the store is inefficient and can actually lead them to the competition. With a single scan, Digimarc Barcode takes shoppers directly to the information they need and creates new opportunities for retailers and brands to engage with their customers.”

Imperceptible to the eye, but scannable by a mobile device, Digimarc Barcode makes any package a gateway to a much richer, digital product experience — all without visibly marring the packaging aesthetics. Because Digimarc Barcodes are replicated across the entire surface of a package, customers can more quickly and easily scan a Digimarc-enabled package with their mobile device to instantly engage with the brand’s mobile web content. The speed and ease of Digimarc’s innovative platform delivers incredible new utility for retailers and brands, including the ability to help consumers learn more about a product, save recipes and shopping lists, redeem special offers and much more.

For retailers, consumer brands and mobile app developers, Digimarc’s Discover Mobile software development kit (SDK) provides the tools to empower retailer, brand and third-party shopping apps (iOS and Android) to deliver faster, easier and more accurate product identification using smartphones. Digimarc delivers the best overall experience for scanning consumer barcodes, QR codes and Digimarc Barcodes, now appearing on store shelves. Powered by the SDK, the free Digimarc Discover mobile app (iOS and Android) or any one of the Digimarc-enabled third-party mobile apps allows shoppers to use their smartphone camera to access digital content more easily than ever.

This survey was conducted within the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Digimarc from October 1-5, 2015 among 2,019 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact pr@digimarc.com.