Krillion: Shoppers spend 30% of time researching buys

According to a recent study from Krillion and the e-tailing group, more than 60% of online shoppers spend roughly one-third of their shopping time researching the product. Some shoppers are spending up to half of their shopping time researching products.

They aren't researching only online, however. Today's shoppers are using offline research, too.

"Consumers are actively gathering detailed product information, insight from other shoppers, and third-party validation from multiple sources — regardless of where they end up consummating the final purchase,” said Sherry Thomas-Zon, vice president of marketing at Krillion. “This means retailers must be poised for a confident, ready buyer who has done his or her homework and could buy through any channel, at any moment.”

Manufacturer websites are huge drawing point for shoppers. When making an information-intensive purchase, more than 70% of shoppers visit a manufacturer's site. Online stores attract 54% of researching shoppers while comparison shopping engines attract 50%.

“Manufacturer websites are clearly critical links in the information gathering process,” said Lauren Freedman, president of the e-tailing group. “This survey underscores their influence as ultimate information resources for sophisticated shoppers, and accordingly we urge manufacturers to strengthen their online knowledge bases and enhance the content they share with their retail and search engine partners.”

Tags: e-tailing, ecommerce, online shopping