Customers love hunting, bragging about online deals

A new survey indicates that retailers gain multiple benefits from offering deals to online shoppers.

According to a survey of 2,000 general population online U.S. consumers from social shopping platform Slickdeals, respondents spend 83 hours annually scrolling online for the best sales, saving nearly $10,000 a year. More than two-thirds (68%) of respondents love to hunt for deals just for fun, and 65% believe finding an online sale brings unmatched satisfaction. 

In good news for retailers seeking to save money on e-commerce advertising, the survey also reveals that a satisfied customer will often serve as a free source of online promotion. Sixty-nine percent of respondents said they want to share their good deals so others can find great purchases, too.

In addition, 58% of respondents feel inclined to tell strangers how much money they saved when complimented on their outfit that they bought on sale. Interestingly, a slightly lower percentage (56%) brag to their friends and family about an online sale they found.

Respondents were asked what steps they would take to obtain an online deal. The top five answers were:

1. Take an online survey (63%)
2. Sign up for an email newsletter (59%)
3. Sign up for a rewards program (51%)
4. Sign up for text updates (50%)
5. Apply for store credit card (28%)

Other interesting findings include:

• Three in four respondents look for deals online because they want to save money.
• 45% of respondents will only buy products if they're on sale — claiming they'll never pay full price for something they find online.
• Three-quarters of respondents said they care more about finding the best value than just buying into a sale because something is cheap.
• In order to catch products right when they go on sale, 44% of respondents have sale alerts set up. Eighty-nine percent of those using sale alerts said it made finding online deals significantly easier for them. 
• Respondents will  keep their eyes on a pending deal for an average of nine days before giving up. Currently, respondents said they're keeping their eyes peeled for deals on clothes (44%), shoes (33%) and groceries (31%).
• According to respondents, the hardest things to find online right now include video game consoles (21%), computer parts (17%) and home appliances (15%).
• Fifty-one percent of respondents will purchase a hard-to-find product, even if it's not on sale. Half said they didn't like or care for people who resell and scalp hard-to-find products online.