Demographics of online shoppers: essential information for your online store

Do you have your own e-commerce business, and have you ever wondered who is actually your biggest customer?

The demographics of online shoppers and online shopping statistics is very interesting for dropshipping business owners, and this article will discuss all you need to know about the subject.

Think women are the biggest spenders? Think again!

This may sound sexist, but most people assume that women are more likely to shop online than men.

It’s interesting to note that women and men shop online in roughly equal amounts, and much depends on what you are selling.

If you sell makeup, skincare and jewelry, your target demographic will obviously be women.

However, sellers of fishing equipment, game consoles, and sporting equipment normally see far more men as customers.

Millennials are the group most likely to shop online.

According to recent online shopping statistics, millennials (18 to 34 year olds) are the demographic group who do the most shopping online.

Regardless of what you sell in your online store, your marketing strategy should therefore definitely target this audience.

The older generations have, in recent years, also shown an increase in online shopping. This, together with the recent Covid-19 pandemic, has seen an even greater increase in e-commerce, making it one of the most lucrative ways to make money.

Your business’s marketing strategy should depend on the product you sell.

If you consider the data in last year’s online shopping statistics, you will know that men are more likely to spend their money online buying mobile phones, technology, household goods, or vacations.

Women, on the other hand, spend most of their online shopping time buying clothing, groceries, and books.

Not all visitors to your online store will actually buy anything.

While it is a good sign if you see a lot of online traffic in your e-commerce store, recent studies have revealed that not all visitors will even end up buying anything.

67% of folks who regularly shop online admit that they often “window shop” online for entertainment purposes.

This statistic may seem rather depressing, but the good news is that 77% of all window shoppers will, at some point, make an impulse purchase.

This goes to show that the appearance of your online store and the attractiveness of deals you offer is very important as you could benefit from all these impulse purchases.

Over two thirds of customers conduct a Google search before making a purchase.

Studies into the demographics of online shoppers have shown that 68% (which is over two thirds) of all online shoppers will conduct a Google search of what they plan on purchasing before they buy it.

This should be clear evidence that you should do everything you can for your business to feature on the first page of Google’s search results.

Whether the consumer wants to compare prices of the product, read reviews, or learn more about it, this shows that today’s consumer is much more informed and has high standards when it comes to shopping.

Online shopping carts have a high abandonment rate.

Many online business owners often feel disheartened at the amount of abandoned carts on their website.

If this sounds like you, don’t feel bad because the global average for cart abandonment is a whopping 69.8%!

Research shows that many people will abandon their cart if they notice that there are hidden or unexpected charges. With this in mind, always be clear and upfront about shipping and admin costs because if these unexpectedly appear in the customer’s cart, they will feel disappointed and more likely to abandon the purchase.

To encourage potential customers to finalize the purchase, you could send them reminders about the items in their cart, and even consider offering them a small discount to entice them.