Why do online shoppers switch devices between research and purchase?

Why do online shoppers switch devices between researching and purchasing online? That's a question Bizrate Insights set out to answer in recent research.

by Helen Leggatt

Bizrate Insight's (Connexity) study, 'Shopping with Multiple Devices', involved questioning 10,056 online shoppers across the U.S. and Canada via an online survey presented immediately after having made an online purchase.

Shoppers were asked whether they researched and purchased on one device, or whether they switched.

The results show that, while nearly a third of desktop purchasers had considered a product on their mobile device prior to buying, nearly half of mobile purchasers considered their purchase on a desktop prior to buying.

When it came to making a purchase, various reasons led to consumers switching between devices.

Those who switched from mobile to desktop said they did so due to the bigger screen (43%) or that they were already using their desktop (41%). Additional reasons were because it was faster on desktop (27%) and because of the keyboard element of desktop shopping (17%).

Those who switched from desktop to mobile to make a purchase did so mainly because their mobile device was closest to hand (58%) or it was the only device to hand when they made the purchase (24%). Nine percent said that making the purchase by phone was easier as their payment information was already saved on their phone.