Internet users can’t keep their mouth shut

August 29th, 2008 – Consumers, who on a regular basis research goods and services on the Internet before making purchase decisions, are not only better informed when purchasing goods, they are also significantly more likely to talk with others and give recommendations about products in comparison with people who do not research goods on the Internet before purchasing.

Based on a survey of 15,727 consumers, the survey company BIGresearch found that 47 percent of consumers who research products on the Internet prior for purchase in a physical shop talk about pros and cons about purchased goods with friends and acquaintances. The corresponding figure is only 29.4 percent among those who have not done their “homework” on the web prior to purchase.

According to online marketing expert Frederic Saigne from zanox, the survey is a “clear message” to product manufacturers and retail shops. “Even if a clothing brand or a digital equipment manufacturer has primarily chosen to sell through physical shops it is still important to make a good impression online.”

He is Nordic Manager for the global online marketing company zanox. In Denmark, zanox is marketing a number of airlines, banks and clothing brands in co-operation with a vast number of web publishers.

Frederic Saigne says, that to make a good impression on the web implies both positive publicity on blogs and online news media and a well-designed and informative company website, which is optimised for search engines. This makes it easier for critical consumers to find information about the desired products and services.

“Using the Internet has become such an integrated part of our daily behaviour, that you simply cannot neglect the importance of it. Not least because keen Internet users have shown to be very talkative and thereby influence other consumers.”

FACTS: Inquisitive and eager

Consumers, who research goods on the web, are in general more inquisitive and eager to share their knowledge with other people and make well considered buying decisions. Typically, they are a little younger, and have a higher income than average.

According to the analysis from BIGresearch, almost half (49%) of all adults say word of mouth influences where they eat out, 42.6% say it influences electronic purchases and 38% say groceries.

About zanox

zanox is the market leader for performance-based multichannel commerce and provides a global platform for efficiently marketing products and services on the Internet. zanox´online marketing services include affiliate marketing and search engine management as well as email marketing and customer loyalty programs.

zanox was founded in 2000 by CEOs Thomas Hessler, Heiko Rauch and Jens Hewald and employs more than 350 people. Apart from its headquarter in Berlin zanox operates offices in USA, UK, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France, Poland, Scandinavia and China. More than 2,000 prestigious international companies across the business sectors TIMES, Travel, Retail & Shopping as well as Financial Services utilise the zanox network.

Since 2007 zanox has been part of the Axel Springer and PubliGroupe. Axel Springer is Germany´s biggest newspaper publishing house and third-largest magazine publisher. PubliGroupe AG is an independent, internationally leading marketing, sales and service group for media and advertisers, supporting these in implementing their communication and media strategies with marketing and technology services.

www.zanox.com