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New study reveals local consumers access an increasing number of online media sources before buying; use of online coupons and appointment scheduling on the rise
CHANTILLY, Va. (March 10, 2010) - Nearly all consumers (97 percent) now use online media when researching products or services in their local area, according to BIA/Kelsey’s (www.bia.com and www.kelseygroup.com) User View Wave VII, an ongoing consumer tracking study conducted with research partner ConStat. Among consumers surveyed, 90 percent use search engines, 48 percent use Internet Yellow Pages, 24 percent use vertical sites, and 42 percent use comparison shopping sites.
“The Internet has indeed become an integral part of consumers’ local commercial activity,” said Steve Marshall, director of research, BIA/Kelsey. “The data suggest we’re at an inflection point where the balance of power in local shopping is shifting to online.”
According to the study, on average, consumers are using 7.9 different media sources when shopping for products or services in their local area, up from 6.5 sources in 2009 and 5.8 in 2008, revealing a noteworthy increase in audience fragmentation. Additional findings include:
58 percent of respondents report using an online coupon when shopping for products or services in their local area in the past year.
19 percent of respondents report making an appointment online in the past six months for a service other than a restaurant reservation (e.g., business appointment, health-care appointment, auto service or personal service such as a beauty shop).
“The increase in audience fragmentation presents challenges for advertisers looking to connect with local consumers,” said Peter Krasilovsky, vice president and program director, Marketplaces, BIA/Kelsey. “These challenges may be outweighed by the targeting opportunities available with tools like coupon promotions and appointment scheduling, the latter being among the best lead sources possible, since you know where people are actually going.”
Marketplaces 2010 (www.kelseygroup.com/marketplaces2010), which takes place March 22-24 in San Diego, focuses on the fast-growing opportunities in local vertical services, media and advertising. The agenda features sessions that drill down into subjects directly related to User View findings, such as:
Keynote by Andrew Mason, CEO, Groupon, a company that harnesses the power of “smart mobs” to bid on featured services in markets across the country.
Pre-Conference: Critical Tools for Marketplace Success. During a special two-part pre-conference, attendees will learn about the latest developments in small-business marketing solutions, which now blend the best of digital and traditional options. Part I will cover online scheduling, promotions, live help acquisition/support, SMB video and classifieds. Part II will focus on vertical search.
Local Retailers and the New Marketplaces. Local retailers have a variety of solutions to add to their Web sites, perform transactions, attract new customers and ultimately make money. A panel of cutting-edge retail enablers will discuss the new age of local retail.