Shoppers Use Internet Primarily For Information.

On the 10th anniversary of the first Web page, holiday shoppers in America are using the Internet in many different ways and most often to seek information, according to the International Mass Retail Association. Their primary use is to find product information — more than half (54%) use the Internet for this purpose. Their second most prevalent use is to see if a particular store carries a particular product (39%). Buying products is their third choice (38%).

Holiday shoppers also use the Internet to: get gift ideas, mentioned by 35 percent of those surveyed; compare prices at various stores (32%), and locate directions to a store (24%).

IMRA surveyed 1,000 consumers December 7-9 in its third weekly holiday shopping survey. This year is the first time IMRA has investigated use of the Internet for holiday shopping purposes.

Men are more likely than women to seek information about products on-line (62% vs. 46%) and less likely to buy the products on-line (36% vs. 40%), IMRA found. For all other purposes, their use of the Internet during the holiday season resembles women’s use.

For more information at http://www.imra.org