iCrossing Study Finds Online Opportunities for Consumer Packaged Goods Marketers

December 21, 2006; 02:29 AM

iCrossing (www.icrossing.com), a digital marketing agency committed to people's desire to find, today announced the results of "How America Searches: Consumer Packaged Goods," the fifth in a series of studies commissioned by iCrossing and conducted by Harris Interactive(R).

The report provides insights into habits of U.S. adults when using the Internet to learn more about consumer packaged goods (CPGs), concentrating on how and the degree to which the online adult population searches for consumer packaged goods online, the types of Web sites they frequent, the factors driving them to search for CPGs online and their attitudes about buying products both on- and offline.

Report findings suggest that the CPG marketers who increase their online marketing efforts can more effectively engage a highly desirable market of affluent customers, particularly women. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Interactive Advertising Bureau, online marketing accounts for less than one percent of the total advertising spend by CPG marketers.

KEY FINDINGS

Consumers are looking for CPGs Online: In terms of the frequency of search activity among online adults in the U.S., 39 percent confirmed they have performed a search for CPGs online. This puts CPGs in the same rank as real estate and financial products and services.

Women lead in CPG search activity: Women were more likely than men to search online for seven of the 11 CPG product categories presented to survey respondents. Footwear and apparel was the most popular CPG category among both male and female online searchers.

Online CPG searches drive offline sales: Research into special offers and looking for coupons that can be used in stores were the most frequently cited reasons for searching for CPGs (60 percent and 52 percent, respectively). Furthermore, about two-thirds or more of those who search for nearly all types of consumer packaged goods indicated they would buy the product type somewhere -- either online or offline.

Site preferences generate opportunities: CPG searchers make nearly equal use of search engines (67 percent), retailer Web sites (61 percent) and product/company sites (61 percent) to search for CPGs online. Only 26 percent go to shopping comparison sites and only 19 percent go to product ratings sites for CPG information.

IMPLICATIONS

Effective CPG marketing requires attention to multiple online channels. CPG marketers should consider increasing their use of online and search engine marketing, targeting leading search engines, retailer Web sites as well as brand and specific product sites. These channels represent opportunities for engaging affluent and female consumers and reinforcing key brand attributes around three distinct consumer interests: finding offers, locating information and conducting commerce. In particular, as marketers focus on driving on and offline purchasing conversions, they should apportion their Web collateral with an eye to the high degree of correlation between search activity and buying intent.

Survey Methodology

Harris Interactive(R) fielded the study from September 19-21, 2006, via its QuickQuery(SM) online omnibus service, among a nationwide sample of 2,345 U.S. adults (aged 18+), of which 1,071 search for consumer packaged goods online. Data were weighted to reflect the total U.S. online adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity and amount of time spent online. In theory, with a pure probability sample of 2,345, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the overall results would have a sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points; a pure probability sample of 1,071 would have a sampling error of +/- 4 percentage points. Sampling error for data based on sub-samples may be higher and may vary. However that does not take other sources of error into account. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no theoretical sampling error can be calculated.