News

Online holiday shopping to be more influenced by social media this year

Survey results show 36 percent of shoppers intend to buy gifts via their mobile device, up 29 percent from last year, and 49 percent will make purchases based on a social referral.

October 10, 2014

E-commerce firm MarketLive has released results from its annual online shopper survey for the 2014 holiday retail season. Survey results show 36 percent of shoppers intend to buy gifts via their mobile device, up 29 percent from last year, and 49 percent will make purchases based on a social referral, mandating that retailers focus on the experience they provide their customers via these two channels.

"The survey results highlight key strategies we are suggesting our merchants implement for the holiday season. Providing an engaging and optimized mobile experience is paramount given that online purchases completed on a mobile device continue to sharply trend upward, as well as pre-purchase activities on mobile such as researching prices and looking up store inventory to see if that special gift is in stock," said Ken Burke, founder and CEO of MarketLive. "In addition, we are advising our merchants to pay attention to their social channels this season. Revenue from the channel may still be growing slowly, but the survey underlines interesting changes in the role of social influence on gift purchases this holiday season. We may have finally turned the corner on social commerce."

The 2014 MarketLive holiday shopper survey consisted of a random sample of 1,000 U.S. consumers who had shopped online at least four times within the past year, own a smartphone, and typically spend $250 or more online annually. The sample was balanced 50 percent male and 50 percent female, and all questionnaires were completed during September of 2014. Median age of the sample was 40.6, median household income was $66,146, and 61 percent attained a college degree or higher.

Some of the results from the survey include:

• 70 percent of shoppers are likely to research on their smartphones the gifts they find in retail stores
• 56 percent are likely to reserve products from their smartphones for subsequent pick-up at retail store
• 30 percent have made a purchase via social in the last year, an increase of 12 percent over 2013
• 49 percent will make a purchase because of a social referral
• 44 percent intend to discover new products via social networks
• 52 percent feel it is important to review products they have purchased
• 48 percent say it is important to share product recommendations with friends/family via social channels
• 42 percent will pin items on Pinterest