Did you do it in an actual brick-and-mortar store or online?
It’s probably the latter, right? Well, you’re not alone. According to Statista’s predictions, online retail is expected to hit the $6 trillion mark by the year 2023.
What’s in it for you?
The simplicity of it all! It’s easier to choose the item you want, put it in a basket, pay for it, and eagerly wait for the mailman to bring you what you purchased online.
What’s in it for the retailers?
Boost in traffic and conversion rates to help online businesses better serve their customers and finally increase their revenue.
Below are some online shopping and eCommerce statistics, trends, and even some fun facts you might not have known.
Online Shopping in Current Numbers
$4 trillion doesn’t sound much, but when you see what the data about global eCommerce and online shopping looks like, it all becomes more serious. We pulled out some of the most fascinating global online shopping statistics for you to check out to consider implementing an eCommerce site or update your existing online store.
- 2.05 billion people shop online. [Statista]
- Online retail sales account for 16.1% of all global retail shares. [Statista]
- Chinese eCommerce companies accounted for most sales in 2019, with 1.9 trillion or 54.7% of all eCommerce market share. [Oberlo]
- Currently, there are between 12 and 24 million eCommerce sites in the world. [Digitalcommerce360]
- The main reason people shop online is due to the fact that they can do it at any time of the day. [KPMG’s report]
About eCommerce Stores
Global statistics are fine as long as you get the bigger picture and read from verified sources. But what about the details related to eCommerce businesses? Let’s see how eCommerce stores make money and what impact it has on their business.
- eCommerce businesses have an average conversion rate of 2%. [Oberlo]
- Retailers invest an average of $0.35 to acquire a new online consumer. [Buffer]
- The most effective method to generate traffic to an eCommerce store is PPC. [Builderfly]
- 50% of people who come to an eCommerce site from paid ads are more likely to buy than those who came from an organic link. [Unbounce]
- By 2040, 95% of all global purchases will be done online. [NASDAQ]
- 68% of small businesses lack a structured conversion rate optimization (CRO) strategy. [State of Conversion Optimization Report]
- Businesses have lost $756 billion because of poor eCommerce personalization in 2019. [Optinmonster]
What Factors Influence Online Purchases?
A common question among online stores is what compels shoppers to make their online purchases. These influencing factors often push the shopper to complete the purchase instead of abandoning their cart. See below to find out what is most likely to influence and motivate the online shopping community.
- 83% of online shoppers are influenced by discount offers. [B2C]
- Times of crisis: the Coronavirus caused a spike in medical product purchases, which grew more than 800%. [Adobe Digital Economy Index]
- 49% of shoppers hate the fact that they can’t touch, feel, or try a product. [BigCommerce]
What and How Are People Buying Online?
You can buy virtually anything online. The only difference between physical stores and online shopping is that you cannot touch or smell the item you’re buying. Nonetheless, people are buying all sorts of things on eCommerce and from all sorts of devices.
- People mostly buy electronics and digital media, such as video games, music downloads, e-books, computers, and phones. [NASDAQ]
- Men usually shop for heavy-duty items such as furniture and computers. [Optinmonster]
- Women usually shop for groceries and clothing. [Optinmonster]
- 75% of consumers search for brand new queries each month. [Salesforce]
Mobile Commerce
Mobile devices are a part of most consumers’ everyday lives, and with the ever-increasing technology of these devices, we can do a number of functions from communication, finding information, navigating, and even online shopping.
As the mobile influence continues to grow in both the U.S. and the U.K., online shopping outlets and eCommerce sites will benefit from giving their websites a mobile-friendly makeover.
- 79% of smartphone users finalized a purchase online using their mobile device in the last 6 months. [Outer Box]
- Almost 37% of smartphone users make an in-store mobile payment every 6 months. [eMarketer]
- Mobile is likely to account for 54% of online sales by 2021, or $659 billion. [BigCommerce]
- Global mobile payments market will grow by 33%. [Growcode]
- Mobile payment apps will make up for $14 trillion of yearly transactions. [Payments Industry Intelligence]
Online Customer Reviews
Online customer reviews can play an essential role in an online shopper’s decision to make a purchase.
Online shoppers will look at customer reviews to gain insight into a product that they do not have the opportunity to feel or touch before making a purchasing decision.
- 71% of online shoppers will recommend a brand they’ve bought from on social media if they had a good experience doing so. [ReadyCloud]
- 88% of shoppers will incorporate reviews into their purchasing decision. [Testimonial Engine]
- 40% of consumers will form an opinion about your company with just 1 to 3 reviews. [BrightLocal]
- Customers will spend 31% more for a business that has excellent reviews. [Invesp]
- 92% of B2B buyers are more likely to purchase after reading a trusted review. [G2]
Customer Satisfaction and Retention
Customer satisfaction is a crucial part of online shopping. If customers are satisfied, they are more likely to leave a positive review, recommend your product or company to others, and become a repeat customer.
Statistics show that unhappy customers can tarnish the reputation of businesses and that most customers find the customer experience one of the most important aspects of doing business with a company.
- Customer-centric companies experience 60% more profit than those that don’t focus on customers. [SuperOffice]
- 84% of companies that constantly improve their customer experience experience an increase in their revenue. [PR Newswire]
- 65% of companies say improving their data analysis is very important to delivering a better customer experience. [Medium]
- 89% of consumers have switched to purchasing from a competitor following a poor customer experience. [Harris Interactive’s report]
Cart Abandonment
When a shopper abandons a cart, it accounts for a significant amount of lost revenue. Some shoppers may fill their carts as it is an easy way to browse or may simply abandon them after due to shipping times, costs, or uncertainty.
- Over 69% of shoppers will abandon their shopping carts. [Baymard Institute]
- The abandonment rate for shopping carts is higher on mobile devices than on laptops with 85.65%. [Sleeknote]
- 55% of shoppers will leave their cart if there are too high extra costs involved. [Baymard Institute]
- The same study shows that the second reason for cart abandonment is being forced to create an account.
- The biggest shopping cart abandonment rate in 2020 is seen in the automotive industry. [Statista]
- 77.8% is the biggest shopping cart abandonment rate per device and it happens on mobile. [Optinmonster]
Social Media Linking And Influence
Social media and social commerce continue to grow, providing retailers with the unique opportunity to connect with their target audience through social media linking and advertising allowing them to reach a larger audience through sharing. The statistics of social media influences speak for themselves.
- The same study shows that 51% of millennials say they would be likely to buy through a social network.
- Worldwide ad spending on Facebook and Instagram combined will reach nearly $95 billion annually in 2021. [eMarketer]
- Online stores that have a social media presence have an average of 32% more sales than those who don’t. [BigCommerce]
- 48% of U.S. internet users aged 18 to 34 years are interested to purchase through social media. [Statista]
Online Shopping Trends By Gender And Generation
Trends in online shopping vary greatly whether you are looking at gender and generation parameters. Here are some of the stats that might surprise you.
- According to the same study, Millennials and Gen Xers spend 6 hours per week shopping online, Baby Boomers spend 4 per week shopping online, while Seniors spend 2.5 hours per week shopping online.
- Men reported spending 28% more online than women during the past year. [Sailthru]
- According to the same study, 52% of men have shopped on marketplaces, 75% at large retailer sites, 39% on web stores or independent boutiques, and 31% at category-specific online stores.
- According to the same study, 56% of women have shopped on marketplaces, 74% at large retailer sites, 48% on web stores or independent boutiques, and 40% at category-specific online stores.
Location Trends For Online Buying
While those who live in cities, suburbia, or even in rural areas all participate in online shopping, their shopping habits vary from area to area.
- In suburban areas, 60% of Americans have shopped on marketplaces, 73% at large retailer sites, 44% on web stores or independent boutiques, and 42% at category-specific online stores.
- In rural areas, 58% of Americans have shopped on marketplaces, 71% at large retailer sites, 39% on web stores or independent boutiques, and 40% at category-specific online stores. [Sailthru]
Fun Facts About Online Shopping
With online shopping on the rise in both the United States and the United Kingdom, there are many interesting facts and stats that you might like to learn about online shopping and eCommerce.
- eCommerce business as a sector is the least corrupt of all other business sectors today. [Ice Cube Digital]
- Pizza Hut was one of the first businesses to offer online orders in 1994. [Medialounge]
- Email marketing accounts for 20% of traffic driving ecommerce sales. [Wolfgang Digital]
- Returning merchandise remains a key demand for online shoppers. 73% of surveyed consumers responded that the returns experience affected whether they would continue shopping with a retailer. [UPS]
- 80% of people make online purchases at least once a month; 30% make a purchase at least once a week. [BigCommerce]
Online or Brick-and-Mortar?
Some people still prefer to shop in the shops. Even though physical stores are still popular within the older generations, online shopping is rapidly dominating the retail market.
- In the 2019 holiday season, Brick-and-mortar sales grew by 1.4%, while eCommerce grew by a staggering 8.1%. [Pymnts]
- The fashion industry is the leader in physical store retail, with 70% of purchases are made offline. [Retail Customer Experience]
- 55% of online shoppers would rather buy from companies that have a physical store presence instead of only being online. [Score report]
- 65% of consumers will compare prices on their smartphones before purchasing in a brick and mortar store. [KPMG’s report]
Conclusion
Online shopping and eCommerce business will continue to grow as shoppers use their mobile devices to research and make purchases.
eCommerce is becoming the go-to place for shopping, so businesses should start mobilizing their website and focus on increasing their goals such as boosting the conversion and satisfaction rates, bringing positive customer experience and offering the best service possible.