One could have never imagined that something as important as Christmas shopping would turn virtual. But it has, and it also created competition among the popular destination of online shopping.
I’m talking about Amazon and Google! This year, there is a prediction that 61% of shoppers will click on Amazon to choose their gifts, while 50% of them will prefer Google for the same.
Wait a minute! This is not my prediction, but research by Searchmetrics, the leading global search experience optimization platform, has revealed this truth. Others competing for the top position are eBay (38%), Facebook (23%), Pinterest (7%), and Twitter (7%).
Talking about the survey Marcus Tober, CTO and founder of Searchmetrics, said, “Our research demonstrates how shopping-related search is evolving and especially the intense competition between traditional search engines such as Google and retail marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, Google recognizes the threat to its business from the likes of Amazon, which is why it changed its Google Shopping service to compete more directly with Amazon.
Retailers now pay to have their product images, prices, and descriptions show up in Google search results pages. So shoppers receive instant, comparative product information from a variety of retailers on Google? which competes directly with the information available from sellers you see on Amazon.”
The research also reveals a difference in preferences between both genders towards online shopping. It is observed that 30% of the women will look for Christmas gifts on social networking while the men who would like to do this is only 17%. The reasons for preferring online shopping also vary. While 32% of consumers find Christmas shopping less stressful by buying online, the other 28% prefer the web to avoid in-store queues and crowds.
Looking at the speed with which online shopping is catching up, Marcus Tober has a piece of advice for the retailers. He said, “For retailers, the advice from the research is that they should use a variety of methods to promote their products at Christmas? And also throughout the year.
They should be trying to increase their visibility in Google searches and build a strong presence on social networks such as Facebook. And even if they are not present on marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, they need to be checking these sites to see what their competitors are doing.”
Now you could ask me why you should take the advice of Searchmetrics. That is because Searchmetrics is the pioneer and leading global enterprise platform for search experience optimization. It has answers to many of those questions SEO professionals and digital marketers are usually faced with. Now that I have answered your question, I hope you will shop wisely.
Happy shopping!
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