ComScore yesterday released a study (sponsored by Searchandise Commerce and iProspect) that seeks to document the “path to purchase” among computer and consumer electronics buyers. The study involved more than 1,000 US consumers.
It shows that consumers typically use four or more information sources online in their product research, with the majority buying offline (though not as much as in other comparable studies). Matt McGee at SEL has a nice general write up of the data.
The study sought to capture and expose online shoppers’ behavior and the sites and resources they consult as they move from research to decision to purchase. As mentioned, this is merely the latest in a number of similar surveys, going back several years, from Yahoo, Krillion, e-Taling Group, comScore (again) and others.
The following were the product sub-categories involved in the study:
Most purchases were researched and accomplished within one month, many within a single week:
The following chart shows the hierarchy of resources consumers used to help them make purchase decisions. It reflects that no single source is dominant, although search engines, retailer websites and OEM websites are the top sources generally:
ComScore reported that search engines or retail sites were consistently the “first or second stop” in the consumer purchase process. The firm said that two-thirds of respondents began their purchase path online but about half actually bought the product in store. (In the broader market, purchases overwhelmingly happen offline.)
The charts immediately below show where respondents purchased their desired products:
This slide is confusing to me. The numbers above are greater than 100%, which I assume is reflective of consumer behavior associated with more than a single product purchase — though comScore doesn’t fully explain in the report.
The data argue that people like the convenience and broad information available online but also want the “tactile experience” and customer service available offline.
Those who purchased offline were asked by comScore to state what might have caused them to buy online. The top responses boil down to pricing or cost: better prices, free shipping or discounts would have caused them to buy online.
