Photo: 123rf
Online shopping is awash with bargain hunters, citing convenience as the number one reason for buying online.
A report by global data and insights organisation Pureprofile and Australia's Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) indicates 83 percent of Australian online shoppers and 77 percent of NZ online shoppers were active every month.
The survey of 1000 Australian and 1000 New Zealand online shoppers during July 2024 also found an increase in the number of shoppers prioritising lower prices and discounts, while 62 percent switched products and brands in favour of cheaper alternatives.
Search engines remained the most used method for shoppers, with 38 percent using price comparison sites and services, and 20 percent using major shopping events to find discounts.
The top three online categories were clothing, fashion and shoes (70 percent), groceries (58 percent) and meals and takeaway (56 percent), with ethical brands important to 46 percent of Australian and 39 percent of New Zealand online shoppers.
Pureprofile chief executive Martin Filz said: "While budgets are tighter, retailers still have a great opportunity to capture attention with most consumers still engaging with some form of retailer marketing."
Most younger shoppers (58 percent) were more likely to consider influencers and other social media in their shopping habits and research.
Shopper loyalty and rewards programs were increasingly important with 92 percent of online shoppers enrolled in at least one such programme and 95 percent were willing to share some data with retailers in return for benefits such as discounts, coupons, free delivery, rewards points and cash back.
While more than 80 percent of online shoppers understand that their data is used for targeting advertising, marketing and personalisation, 71 percent of online shoppers were increasingly concerned with how retailers use their shopper data compared with 59 percent last year.
IAB Australia chief executive Gai Le Roy said transparency was critical in building customer loyalty and trust.
"It is critical that retail businesses ensure they are providing clear information about their use of shopper's personal information," Le Roy said.