While consumers may be clicking less frequently, the intent behind those clicks is significantly stronger, says analysis by digital marketing platform, esbconnect.

Insights from nearly 70million email marketing messages by ebsconnect showed that shoppers’ behaviour has shifted from discovery to intent, as AI discovery becomes more prevalent in their buying journeys.

The data suggests the era of high-volume, low-quality acquisition may finally be at an end, as intent increases and clicks become rarer but more valuable. Its figures showed click-to-conversion rates have increased by between 2x and 5x.

“Consumers are becoming more selective about what they engage with, but far more likely to convert when they do,” said Suzanna Chaplin, CEO at esbconnect. She added digital channels were moving “from a discovery to an intent economy.” 

“Clicks are becoming rarer, but far more valuable, and brands that capture consumers when they are actively researching a purchase massively outperform those chasing cheap traffic.”

Some of the highest lead volumes now come from ecommerce brands, but the time to conversion has increased, indicating hyper-competition for consumer attention and spend.