Is it cheaper to buy goods online? A recent report found that 75% of the items its authors reviewed were for sale at the same price online and offline. Anthem Marketing Solutions regularly compares online and in-store pricing of consumer goods.
Anthem’s January findings show pricing differences vary by category. For example, the Household products category had highest price consistency at 80.8%, while the Beauty category had the lowest price consistency at 62.1%.
And when a price difference exists, 75% of observations favor the online channel.
Online discounts were observed as high as 73.7%, and instore discounts observed as high as 58.6%.
The publishers of the report had some advice for merchants: “Online retailers need to be careful of training consumers with frequently repeated blanket discounts – you’ve already won the pricing war vs. brick & mortar stores, now focus on convenience, repeat replenishment, and other benefits your channel can offer to keep consumers loyal,” it advised.
It also had some advice for shoppers: “Bundle smaller purchases and consider stocking up when buying convenience items online to take advantage of blanket discount codes,” it said. And, “If you’re looking for cost savings, online still isn’t there when it comes to grocery; best use for online right now is to ease delivery of heavy/ bulky/ high volume items to make your typical grocery shopping trip easier.”
You can find an introduction to the study along with a link to the report on the AnthemEdge.com website.
