UK shoppers commonly engage in online retail therapy on Monday mornings in order to counter the ‘back-to-work blues’, a new study has found.
Research released by Rakuten shows the UK, USA and Germany all clocking their highest browsing figures on Monday mornings.
In France, where young school goers only attend classes four days a week, it was found that online shopping peaked on Wednesdays, when parents were at home looking after the kids.
In both the US and UK, mobile browsing is at its heaviest occurs in the morning with many UK shoppers utilising their commuting time on buses and trains to go online.
The study suggests that eCommerce companies should be prepared for a surge from UK mobiles between 7-8am, and from 10am from US shoppers.
“These findings demonstrate how e-commerce has become a part of our everyday lives, making retail more pervasive than it has ever been,” said Adam Stewart of Play.com.
“Thanks to mobile devices, consumers in the UK are now able to make purchases during their commute, while in France parents can now order groceries online while looking after the children, without having to drag them to the supermarket.
“Consumers still make considered choices, taking longer to decide on more expensive items, but in certain cases, savvy shoppers are clearly doing their research before purchasing, harnessing the power of the internet and social networks to make informed choices.”
Mark Kirschner, executive officer of global marketing at Rakuten, says eCommerce businesses should take note of the importance of local differences when planning their strategies.
“E-commerce is a truly global phenomenon and insights from across our network highlight the importance of understanding local differences and how they should shape the approach online merchants take,” he said.
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Survey: People shop “to banish back-to-work blues”…