Study: Online sales, browsing come from different sources

This holiday season, both laptop/desktop computers and mobile phones will play a critical role in the online path to purchase.



According to a new study of more than 1,000 U.S, consumers from online discount platform Ebates, more than half of Americans (53%) are choosing to use their laptops to shop this holiday season, followed by their home computer (39%) and their mobile phone (24%).



However, shoppers also plan to use their mobile phones to research gifts before making their final purchases, with 54% performing mobile research before purchasing on a computer.



Looking at some newer connected devices, the survey also revealed that 31% of Americans prefer shopping on their tablets, but only 4% like shopping on their smart watches.



When asked why they prefer shopping online, 83% of Americans said they most appreciate that it saves them time. This is followed by being able to find lower prices on the items they want to buy (73%). More than two-thirds (69%) say free shipping keeps them shopping online, while 62% appreciate not having to drive to the store, and 61% like not having to deal with the holiday crowds.



In addition, half of Americans admit that they end up doing last minute shopping because there is always someone they have forgotten to buy a gift for, and 31% will take advantage of free shipping and order these last minute gifts online.