New research from retail-focused digital marketing agency CPC Strategy tracks how shopper behavior on the Amazon platform is changing, and offers some striking insights into where brands can tap into Amazon’s unstoppable influence over the retail industry.
The firm recently released its 2018 Amazon Shopper Behavior Study: How Shoppers will Browse and Buy on Amazon. JP Morgan estimates advertising revenue on the platform could skyrocket to $4.5 billion in 2018, a 61-percent increase from $2.8 billion in 2017. The big question for brands is how to capitalize on their investment in the marketplace.
To better understand the consumer mindset, CPC Strategy asked 1,500 shoppers how they feel about ads on Amazon, how often they use Amazon to discover new products or brands, and the biggest factors in their decision to purchase items. The research uncovered some unexpected responses. When asked how shoppers feel about ads on Amazon, 65 percent don’t notice the ads and 25 percent find them “useful or relevant.”
“The number of Amazon shoppers who either don’t notice ads on Amazon or find them ‘useful and relevant’ is truly mind blowing,’ said Rick Backus, CEO and cofounder of CPC Strategy, in a news release. “There are very few advertising channels where that’s the case. Amazon has been improving their native advertising experience for shoppers, and it’s clearly paying off.”
When repeating a question from the 2017 study, the research showed a noteworthy shift in consumer behavior: last year, nearly 50 percent of Amazon shoppers reported they were open to “occasionally” or “frequently” trying new products or brands on Amazon. This year, that number jumped to nearly 80 percent.
Other key findings of the report:
- 14.2 percent made a purchase with a voice-enabled device in the last six months
- 61.3 percent of respondents who have a voice-enabled device own an Amazon Echo or Dot
- 74.8 percent of Amazon shoppers still price check on other sites
So what can brands take away from this research?
Amazon will continue to improve their native advertising experience for shoppers, ensuring they’re helping consumers to find the right product, for the right price, at the right time. Sellers will reap the benefits, but only if they have the right strategy.
Trends from 2018 will continue, and even more brands will have the opportunity to steal market share from big brands. This change will be driven by the average Amazon shopper’s openness to new brands and price-conscious nature.
Finally, despite some uncertainty with brands surrounding voice search, Amazon is bullish on Alexa. The study suggests that Bezos is smart to “double down” on the Alexa consumer experience.
“We expected that some Amazon shoppers owned Amazon’s voice enabled devices and had made purchases using Alexa, but we weren’t prepared to see numbers like this so early into the game,” said Nii Ahene, COO and cofounder of CPC Strategy, in the release. “The battle for ultimate marketplace dominance isn’t over, but Amazon is off to an early lead.”
The annual survey was commissioned by CPC Strategy and conducted by Survata, who asked 1,500 online respondents ages 18-65 a series of questions, including how far Amazon shoppers are willing to search beyond page one, how many Amazon shoppers are using Alexa to buy products and what Amazon shoppers prioritize when deciding to make a purchase.
