Online shoppers rely on product reviews

Research concludes that active online shoppers increasingly rely

on product reviews as a key to making purchasing decisions.

Conducted by global e-commerce platform provider ChannelAdvisor, the survey also found that consumers are increasingly interacting directly with retailers through social media sites like Facebook and Google.

As the number of retailers focusing their marketing efforts on multichannel offerings increases, 83 per cent of respondents claimed that they are likely to visit a retailer’s website if it is recommended by a Facebook friend. Scot Wingo, CEO of ChannelAdvisor, explained that the findings were an important lesson for growing multichannel retailers.

“Consumers are increasingly diversifying the places they shop online, which is reflected within this survey and further highlights the need for retailers to expand their reach on every e-commerce channel, including mobile and social,” he said. “The development of emerging channels within the past year is staggering, supporting our belief that these channels are more than just passing trends. The survey reveals how influential social networks have become, as well as their potential to drive e-commerce moving forward.”