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Survey: Online shoppers have become deal-hungry

Eighty-one percent of survey respondents said the accessibility of discount, deal and coupon sites have affected their willingness to pay full price. In fact, 35 percent said they never pay full price for items online.

November 25, 2014

Omnichannel marketing firm Cartera Commerce has announced the results of a study that indicates the ease of e-commerce and availability of discount sites has led to more consumers expecting a better deal this holiday season.

The "2014 Consumer Spending and Deal-Seeking Behaviors" research demonstrates that consumers are no longer willing to pay full price for online purchases, according to the company. Eighty-one percent of survey respondents said the accessibility of discount, deal and coupon sites have affected their willingness to pay full price. In fact, 35 percent said they never pay full price for items online.

The research also suggests rewards program members are highly engaged deal seekers. According to the survey, 87 percent of respondents who participate in these programs redeem rewards for points, cashback and miles. Consumers find rewards programs tied to immediate cash savings or discounts the most valuable, citing cashback and points that can be exchanged for cash and discounts as the most sought after rewards. However, 39 percent of respondents are unaware that these programs offer online shopping malls that provide a one-stop shop to find the best deals.

Highlights from the study include:

• Aside from convenience, respondents said the top reason they shop online is for “better deals and discounts” (52 percent); the second most selected response was “easier to compare prices” (41 percent), followed by “larger selection/inventory” (36 percent).
• Consumers look to a variety of sites to find the best deals, citing store/brand websites (52 percent), search engines (39 percent), and searchable deals, cashback and discount sites (38 percent) as the top three sources.
• 89 percent of respondents said if they knew they could find almost all of the discounted products they need and want on one website, they’d shop on that site more frequently.
• 62 percent of respondents expect to spend less than $499 online this holiday season.
• Half of respondents say they will spend "about the same" this holiday season, but more respondents said they will spend more online this holiday season (28 percent online vs. 8 percent in stores) and less in stores (47 percent in stores vs. 22 percent online).