ChannelAdvisor Corporation: Amazon Leads as Top Channel for Product Research, According to New Data from ChannelAdvisor

A survey of UK consumers provides brands and retailers with actionable insights into when, where, and how they shop online, ahead of the festive season

LONDON, Sept. 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- ChannelAdvisor Corporation (NYSE: ECOM), a leading provider of cloud-based e-commerce solutions, today released the results of its 2022 E-Commerce Consumer Survey, which gauged the shopping behaviors of over 5,000 respondents in the UK, U.S., Europe, and Australia. The global survey found consumers in the UK trust Amazon for product research significantly more than any other channel, with social media found to be the least trusted platform.

The results of the survey offer brands and retailers actionable insights into the current perspectives of online shoppers and found 48% of consumers in the UK trust Amazon for product research, compared to just 4% who trust social media.

Despite this lack of trust in social media, 22% of respondents said they discovered products through sites like Instagram and TikTok.

The survey results also revealed how inflation and rising costs are affecting consumer purchasing decisions and their priorities when conducting online research before or during an in-store shopping experience. Despite the cost of living increasing, three-quarters of UK consumers claimed they are spending the same amount or more online as they were compared to last year.

"To stay competitive and agile in this changing environment, brands and retailers must first understand how, where and why consumers are shopping," said Mike Shapaker, chief marketing officer at ChannelAdvisor. "There are certainly encouraging signs for those operating in the UK as, despite strong headwinds, consumers are still spending online. While consumers do look to continue buying, these purchases will be more considered, and understanding how these decisions are made will be vital."

Key UK findings that emerged from this year's survey data include:

• Amazon has become the top channel for consumer research with nearly nine out of ten consumers using the e-commerce platform for assessing products
• Retail media ads are influencing consumer purchase decisions with 41% of respondents saying they'd purchased after seeing an advert on Amazon
• The 2022 festive season will continue to involve heavy online research and purchasing activity as a result of consumers' shrewd spending philosophy

UK trends indicate shopping journeys involve more activity across retail sites and marketplaces

• 85% of UK consumers use multiple digital touchpoints during their buying journey
• 71% of consumers tend to use multiple marketplaces on a regular basis for browsing, shopping or buying
• 16% of consumers regularly use three marketplaces on a regular basis for browsing, shopping or buying, and 11% use four or more
• 33% of consumers have purchased an item from a foreign retail site or marketplace in the past 12 months
• These purchases are more frequent among younger consumers (54% of 18- to 25-year-olds) than older consumers (19% of consumers aged 65+)
• 47% of UK consumers have used click and collect in the past 12 months

Marketplaces are the most common channels to discover new products

• 89% of UK consumers browse items on marketplaces or retail sites without the direct intention to purchase something
• 42% of UK consumers "discovered" products they've purchased in the past 12 months by browsing marketplaces

Retail media advertising is becoming essential to increase product awareness

• 32% of UK consumers have clicked on a sponsored or promoted ad that they saw on a marketplace or retail site in the past 12 months, which lags behind other regions as the global figure is 10% higher
• This activity is higher among younger shoppers (60% of consumers aged 18-25 and 49% of consumers aged 26-35)
• 41% of consumers have purchased an item on Amazon after seeing an ad for that product on Amazon

Amazon has become the top channel for research in the UK

• In the past 12 months, consumers have researched products on these sites*
• Facebook: 22%
• Instagram: 21%
• Google: 78%
• Amazon: 88%
• eBay: 63%

Pricing is a major factor for consumers before making a purchase:

• 83% of consumers usually compare prices before making a purchase
• 99% of consumers consider price a somewhat or very important factor in product selection
• 64% of consumers indicated their reason for researching products online before or during shopping in-store "often" involves checking prices

The 2022 festive season will continue to involve heavy online research and purchasing activity:

• 85% of UK consumers plan to spend the same amount of time or more shopping for festive gifts online compared to last year
• 20% of 18- to 25-year-old consumers plan to conduct festive shopping research on social media sites

Click here to read the full survey results, including holiday and category-specific results.

Survey Methodology

ChannelAdvisor commissioned leading research firm Dynata to survey 5,000 consumers in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Australia about their online shopping and research habits in 2022. Respondents, who ranged in ages from 18 to 65, were screened and sampled in partnership with Dynata.

There were 1,000 respondents in the UK segment.

For more details about ChannelAdvisor, visit ChannelAdvisor's blog, follow ChannelAdvisor on Twitter @ChannelAdvisor, like ChannelAdvisor on Facebook and connect with ChannelAdvisor on LinkedIn.

About ChannelAdvisor

ChannelAdvisor (NYSE: ECOM) is a leading multichannel commerce platform whose mission is to connect and optimize the world's commerce. For over two decades, ChannelAdvisor has helped brands and retailers worldwide improve their online performance by expanding sales channels, connecting with consumers across the entire buying cycle, optimizing their operations for peak performance, and providing actionable analytics to improve competitiveness. Thousands of customers depend on ChannelAdvisor to securely power their e-commerce operations on channels such as Amazon, eBay, Google, Facebook, Walmart, and hundreds more. For more information, visit www.channeladvisor.com.

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