Online and Offline Shopping ‘Starting to Blur’

by Mike Essex on 16th November 2010

The differences between online and offline shopping experiences are beginning to become less well defined, it has been suggested.

Sameer Samat, director of product management at Google, explained that while using the internet to buy products is good when a customer knows what they are looking for, visiting physical stores allows consumers the chance to browse, as well as taking goods home on the day they are purchased.

However, the executive noted recent research from analyst Forrester, which explained while 93 per cent of retail purchases are still made in stores, 46 per cent of these buys are influenced by online research.

"Not to mention that shoppers can access the web from anywhere at anytime – including from their mobile phones when browsing the aisles of a local store," he added.

According to recent research conducted by YouGov, up to 45 per cent of British adults are planning to make an online purchase in the week leading up and including to Cyber Monday, which is traditionally the busiest day for internet shopping before Christmas.

It falls on December 6th this year.