Anyone who is working in ecommerce will know how complicated it can be to measure where customers truly come from and how they’ve gotten to the point of becoming your customer.
Far from simply waking up one morning and going straight to a website to make a purchase, most consumers have a far more complex journey than that. It’s no longer even as simple as reading a few buying guides, checking reviews and then checking out either.
In fact, recent insight from Google shows just how complicated the path to purchase is in 2024.
Let’s take a look at some of the key statistics:
60% of consumers take 6 or more actions before making a purchase
These actions include a whole host of things and here are some of them:
- 80% compare the price of similar brands or products before deciding which to buy and making the purchase
- 75% search online for reviews or further information
- 66% sometimes go to see a product in store first
Google Still Has Its Place
While Tiktok Shop, Temu and Amazon take a chunk of shoppers’ budget, Google still has an important place in the buying journey too:
- For example, 70% of online shoppers who are also active (at least weekly) social media users report that they use Google Search to inform or evaluate purchases that caught their attention on social media.
So what do you do?
Well, it starts with research in my opinion. You need to understand your specific consumer. Insights like these from Google are a useful and helpful benchmark but you need to know your customers and how they are shopping.
Consider surveying your existing customers about how they found you. Learn which platforms they spend their time on online and make sure you’re reaching them on those channels through organic and paid media avenues.
Price parity is important – particularly in a cost of living crisis. And maintaining consistently positive reviews (through offering great service and product) is more critical than ever before.
