New survey is latest sign that pricing pressures are driving the retail market
In yet another sign that pricing is the key driver in the current retail environment, a new study found that among Amazon shoppers, the single most commonly cited reason for making a purchase on the site is price.
A December 2016 study from CPC Strategy surveyed 1,500 internet users about their Amazon shopping habits and the path to purchase they take, from discovering a product to finally buying an item.
According to the survey, price was the number one factor for US internet users when making a purchase on Amazon. Amazon’s convenient shipping and quality of reviews followed in importance for shoppers.
“Consumers come to Amazon for a lot of reasons—product selection, reliability and cost of delivery, service—but without highly competitive pricing, Amazon’s edge would disappear,” said eMarketer analyst Yory Wurmser. “Amazon’s huge scale and logistical prowess give it the power to undersell competitors much of the time, earning it a reputation for lowest total price, even when competitors sometimes beat it.”
The perception of price value appears to create a virtuous circle leads many shoppers to try new products and brands when on Amazon. According to the CPC survey, 25% of the respondents said they sometimes try new products or brands on Amazon, while another 23% frequently try an unfamiliar brand or item. Men and women were relatively aligned in how often they discovered new products or brands on Amazon.
Still, shoppers on Amazon don’t just take it on faith that the prices are better there. Only 10% said that they don’t check prices elsewhere before buying. By comparison, about one-quarter said they always compare prices, and another 30% said they do so at least some of the time.
by Alison McCarthy
