Marketers Must Convert Researchers to Buyers

Research company Compete Inc. studied consumers researching mobile phones. Their primary findings were that about 60% of consumers researched new products online rather than in-store, this number is just behind consumer reliance on friends and family recommendations. About 88% intend to use the Internet to research a mobile purchase in the coming year. That is up 7% from last year.

In another study the Consumer Electronics Association found that about 77% of consumer electronics (computers, video games, televisions, etc) purchases were the result of online research. Comparison pricing and product variety were the biggest reasons consumers chose to research online.

The problem is that though customers are researching online they are still purchasing in-store. In the Compete study more people indicated they were open to buying online, but still most are more comfortable researching online and going to a brick-and-mortar store. Primary in that reasoning could be the immediacy factor. When shopping online, customers must wait for the item to ship. When they shop in traditional stores there is immediate gratification.

In order to overcome the vast majority of in store shoppers, online retailers must somehow make waiting for a purchase to ship and arrive worth the wait.

Tags: loyalty marketing, online advertising, online marketing, search marketing