Consumers say shopping online sparks the most joy. In conversation with Seth Matlins, Managing Director of Forbes’ CMO Network, as part of a Forbes feature, Libby Rodney (The Harris Poll), Laura Cosgrove (Rokt), Mark Weinstein (Hilton), and Adi Thacker (Poshmark) explored how marketers can tap what we call JOCO, the joy of checking out. The discussion focused on why the moment of purchase is the most powerful canvas for relevance and what happens when brands meet customers with precision in the Transaction Moment.
Our joint survey with The Harris Poll found that 53% of respondents reported that shopping with online retailers delights them, outranking streaming content and interacting with social media. Happiness peaks when a purchase is confirmed, but there is a catch. While 70% love a last-minute deal, 62% would abandon their carts rather than navigate irrelevant offers during checkout.
Happiness peaks at checkout. When you get that confirmation page, people feel accomplished.
-Libby Rodney, Chief Strategy Officer, The Harris Poll
Four insights from the leaders
1) Joy peaks at confirmation
Libby Rodney, Chief Strategy Officer at The Harris Poll, summarized the research: online shopping is “the happiest place on the internet,” and 73% of people experience JOCO, with happiness peaking at checkout as that confirmation page lands. Customers feel decisive, accomplished, and excited about what comes next.
Libby, you you really led the research, I'm wondering if if for the audience, could summarize the key findings, and within that, or maybe additionally to it, if there are any one one or two things that actually surprised you. Yeah. I mean, Seth, I think the, you know, the construct of these findings are in opposition to the doom scrolling era of our time or this big news about the internet or everyone trying to disconnect. When you look online, what's interesting about it is online shopping is like the happiest place of the internet. So like, we wanna talk about good news, like, let's talk about shopping online, because that is the not good news. It's the happiest place over streaming, over social media. And in fact, seventy three percent of people have this, what we call Joko moment, which you call the joy of checking out. So not FOMO, but Joko. And what's most interesting as part of that is happiness peaks at that checkout. So not, you know, Laura talked about the whole experience, but really when you check something out and you get that confirmation page, people feel so accomplished. That dopamine comes and it hits and it's exciting. And I think we can always relate to having that experience, especially in times of there is so much choice. So when you finally make that choice with your discretionary income, it's it's pretty exciting.
Why it matters: The confirmation page is a high-trust, high-attention moment. Customers feel confident in their choice, which creates space for relevant next steps that deepen engagement and support business outcomes.
2) The Transaction Moment fuels excitement across categories
Laura Cosgrove, Senior Vice President of Retail Client Success at Rokt, noted that the dopamine peak isn’t limited to one category. Whether someone is bidding on a rare piece of apparel or locking in a hotel, the hard part of researching, comparing, and making a decision is already behind them. At that point, they’re confident and ready to move forward. That’s why relevance matters most in the Transaction Moment, and why a well-timed, contextual experience resonates more than a generic offer.
Laura, to stick with you for just a second, you talked about kind of the dopamine and the excitement. I think for some of our audience, situationally, that's easily understood, but in some categories, it might be a surprise. What'd you find out about the dopamine and excitement that really is pervasive across these transaction moments? Yep. If we contextualize it in what customers are actually purchasing, think of things like bidding on a very unique clothing on something like Poshmark or booking their holiday and booking their hotel at Hilton. Those are exciting moments. Those are things to look forward to when they're actually delivered to the customer. So it makes complete sense that they're excited. Know, the stress of trying to research or where am I gonna stay? How far is it from the beach? Whatever it might be, that's all done. They've made the decision. They have the intent, and they also have the trust with this brand to buy with them.
Why it matters: When the research is done and intent is clear, customers are most receptive to guidance. Real-time relevance at this stage improves usefulness, reduces noise, and drives higher-quality actions than broad, generic targeting.
3) In travel, confirmation starts the dreaming
Hilton’s Chief Marketing Officer, Mark Weinstein, drew a clear parallel to trip planning. The moment you book, “the dreaming begins.” Removing stress makes space for anticipation, which is when relevant add-ons and loyalty actions feel helpful, not intrusive.
Within the transaction moment, excitement peaks at clicking perk purchase. It continued in saying, in this way, online shopping isn't unlike planning a vacation. The confirmation of the trip and the anticipation of it is often the best part of the experience, which data has proven for for some time well beyond this research. And I'm wondering if if the parallel between that moment and your business influences how you and your team at Hilton are in fact approaching the adding of joy and the driving of incremental revenue at at checkout. Yeah, it's a great question. I love the way that Laura and Libya frame this up. If you think about it, it may be a lot of interactions before you even get to us. You're on social media researching where you want to go and what you want to do. GEO, in this generative environment, may take you through multiple steps that we don't even know about, we don't even contemplate today. When you get to us at that moment, it's a chance to take all the stress and pressure away from planning the right thing to now actually having it in your shopping cart to now actually having it in your account. Once you make that booking decision, I think of it as the start of the conversation, the dreaming begins. Now customers can start to imagine having their kids on the beach and having that pina colada and doing all the things you want to do.
Why it matters: Booking unlocks anticipation, and anticipation drives action. When brands align follow-ups to that mindset, add-ons, loyalty prompts, and service recommendations feel supportive rather than disruptive, improving both experience and revenue.
4) Marketplaces amplify JOCO through the “win”
Poshmark’s Senior Vice President of Ads & Partnerships, Adi Thacker, described the treasure-hunt dynamic of fashion resale. Finding that rare dress or pair of sneakers and then checking out “feels like a win.” In that moment, Poshmark sees high engagement with Rokt-powered offers because they extend the celebration rather than interrupt it.
As a social commerce platform, I'm wondering, how you and Poshmark are tapping into The Joy of Checking Out to add value, not just to the buyer, of course, but also to the sellers on your platform because you've got a a double sided marketplace. Do you have a thesis? Are you developing a thesis on on what converts best and what adds the most joy? Yeah, absolutely. So I mean, Poshmark, as you all know, is a C2C fashion platform where you can buy and sell anything from dresses and shoes to hats and bags. I think what we've seen is, I mean, all the things you guys have talked about in terms of that Joker moment, dopamine, like we believe it's amplified on Poshmark because shopping for fashion for that elusive dress for those sneakers that are so rare, really sort of magnifies that Joko instance. So, you've gone on this treasure hunt to find a great deal on your favorite brand and suddenly you are post transaction, post checkout, and that's a moment of, I mean, it actually feels like a win. It's a celebration of your shopping journey on Poshmark. So to that end, I think we've seen very high engagement rates with the ads and offers that we see from Rokt in that moment. Echo all the things we've talked about, travel and booking that holiday and that moment, but we believe the combination of the fun shopping we provide in that instance makes something very special.
Why it matters: After a successful find, customers are primed to keep the momentum going. Leaning into that celebratory mindset increases engagement with offers that match the moment and strengthens long-term marketplace behavior.
What this means for marketers
The checkout and confirmation steps carry more emotional weight than most teams realize. The research shows that confidence, relief, and anticipation peak once a customer makes a decision, whether they’re booking a trip, winning a marketplace find, or completing a long-considered purchase. Treating this window as its own experience, rather than a transactional handoff, helps protect that momentum.
Relevance matters here. Irrelevant offers add friction, but well-timed and contextually aligned experiences can extend the sense of accomplishment customers already feel. Across categories, leaders are looking closely at what happens from selection to confirmation and designing interactions that feel native, clear, and useful.
For marketers, the takeaway is simple: examine the Transaction Moment as a distinct part of the journey. Look for opportunities to remove noise, reinforce confidence, and meet customers with actions that fit the moment, not more choice, but the right choice.
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