• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, September 26, 2022

Amazon, Google, and eBay have become the top three destinations to search for products in the United States and EMEA, according to a recent study.

Consumers participating in ChannelAdvisor’s survey note that within the past 12 months 89% have researched products on Amazon,  while 82% have researched on Google, and 52% on eBay.

Some 27% said they researched products on Facebook, and 24% have researched on Instagram. The stats exclude Australia.

ChannelAdvisor commissioned leading research firm Dynata to survey 5,000 consumers in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Australia about their online shopping and research habits in 2022.

Respondents ages 18 to 65 took part in the 2022 E-Commerce Consumer Survey. About 5,009 respondents in the U.S., Europe, and Australia shared their thoughts on online search and buying.

The survey results also reveal how inflation and rising costs affect consumer purchase decisions and priorities when conducting online research before or during an in-store shopping experience.

As a result of soaring consumer price inflation, the U.K. saw total online retail sales fall 9.9% year-over-year in June 2022, according to eMarketer.

Personal consumer spending in the U.S., adjusted for inflation, rose 0.1% during the same month.

Regardless of consumer spending levels at the time ChannelAdvisor conducted this study, consumers could tighten holiday spending and become less loyal to brands as the stock market dips and interest rates rise.

When it comes to overall spend, 23% of consumers say they are spending less online now than they did 12 months ago, while 31% are spending more and 46% are spending about the same.

Aside from Amazon becoming the top channel for consumer research, retail media ads on sites like Walmart and Target influence consumer purchase decisions, and this year’s holiday buying season will rely heavily on research before making a purchase.

Although marketplaces like Amazon and eBay have become common channels to discover new products, retail media advertising has become essential to increase product awareness.

Some 89% of consumers browse items on marketplaces or retail sites without the direct intention to purchase something, and 42% of consumers discovered products they have purchased in the past 12 months by browsing marketplaces.

The findings show that 42% of consumers have clicked on a sponsored or promoted ad they saw on a marketplace or retail site in the past 12 months. Some 44% of consumers have purchased an item on Amazon after seeing an ad for that product on that marketplace.

It’s not surprising that price will be a major factor for consumers to consider before making a purchase this holiday season. Eighty-three percent of survey participants said they compare prices before making a purchase, while 99% consider price a somewhat important or very important factor in product selection and 61% said their reason for researching products online before or during shopping in-store "often" involves checking prices.