Survey: 2 in 5 women read blog reviews before making an online purchase

17/01/2012

Blogs could change the way people see your product.

It seems that these days the world wide web is less about programming competitions and more to do with e-commerce opportunities and grabbing high-end fashion pieces on the cheap.

And if new figures are right it is women who are leading the charge online with many of them turning to social media in order to share and discover new information.

IBISWorld reports that online shopping – which is predominately a female pursuit – is set to boom this year, as retailers seek to expand their consumer base and close bricks-and-mortar establishments.

In 2011, the industry made more than nine billion dollars and experts are predicting it will grow by more than 10 per cent this year – which means it will account for five per cent of the total retail sector.

Karen Dobie, the Australian general manager of IBISWorld, said that while growth of this nature was unusual, it also reflected consumer confidence in online sales and merchandise.

"Consumers [are] becoming more comfortable with shopping online, and more major retailers launching online stores," she said.

But the constraints attached to online shopping – the obvious example is the fact that consumers can not see or touch items before buying them – means that individuals have to spend time browsing the web for detailed information on the companies and products they are investing in.

This draws us to our next obvious question: how do online shoppers research goods and services and who do they trust when it comes to product information?

Mum PR offers an insight into this dilemma with the publication of their Australian Women and Social Medial 2011 survey – which examined the user habits of 708 women online.

The communications firm found that two in every five women that browse the internet seek out blog reviews before making a purchase.

Brands wanting to expand their own media strategy might find blogs a cost effective way of engaging shoppers.

Posted by Aimee McBride