Top Reasons People Shop Online May Surprise You

The ability to shop at home, wearing p.j.s, seems to be a big reason many people will buy gifts online during this holiday season.

According to a recent survey by Nielsen Online, a service of the Nielsen Company, most people who shop online during the holidays do it not to save money, but to save time. Their online survey of 1000 people found that 81 percent shop online because they can shop any time of the day. Seventy-seven said they like to save time. Sixty-one percent said they like to comparison shop, and 56 percent said they like it because they can find things easily.

Interestingly, just 46 percent listed low prices as a reason to shop online, and 24 percent cited low shipping costs.

Similarly, an "eStudy" conducted by BizRate Research, a Shopzilla company, for Shop.org, found that convenience rules. Shop.org is part of the National Retail Federation.

Their "eStudy" included 2,695 people and found that the top reason to shop online was that people like to shop at any time of the day. More than 58 percent of the people chose that reason. Nearly 44 percent said they shop online so they won't have to fight crowds in stores. Nearly 39 percent said they like the general convenience of shopping on the Internet. About 36 percent of the shoppers also said they like the ability to compare prices online.

Unlike the Nielsen survey, the study done for Shop.org found that free shipping is a big draw. About 61 percent of the shoppers said that free shipping without conditions is one of the promotions they would most like to see.

"Free shipping offers drive online sales more than any other promotion, which is why they remain popular," said Scott Silverman, Executive Director of Shop.org.

Their survey also included 116 retailers and found that more than three-quarters of the businesses plan to offer free shipping with conditions. (With conditions means you have to buy a certain item or a certain amount before you get the free shipping.) Some retailers also plan on using shipping upgrades or discounted shipping.

And, trying to lure in the bargain hunters, theShop.org survey found that nearly two-thirds of retailers will offer online-only sales this year, up from fifty-nine percent two years ago.

"Retailers are keenly focused on promotions, which certainly have the ability to move the needle in the short term," said Ken Cassar, from Nielson Online. He says "In the long run, however, convenience keeps people coming back."