The Internet Plays a Pivotal Role in Purchase Decisions, Especially in Asia

Asians are more likely to look to the Internet to make purchasing decisions, as revealed by key findings in the Global Retail Index, a new study commissioned by Microsoft Advertising and Aegis Media, and undertaken independently by London-based Essential Research.

Compared to the US, Asian consumers outranked their counterparts in using digital media when considering purchases. Key findings include:

• 59% of Asians used the Internet during the pre-purchase journey compared to 28% of consumers in the US;
• 81% of Asian respondents admitted to changing their mind aboutwhat they wanted to purchase after doing research
• 45% of Asians used a mobile phone during purchase (in-store) compared to 25% of consumers in the US;
• 19% of Asians used digital media following post-purchase compared to 12% of consumers in the US.
• 26% of Asian respondents stated that they would make product recommendations online.

Additional noteworthy quotes from Richard Dunmall, Vice President, Microsoft Advertising Greater Asia Pacific and Americas, and Nick Waters, CEO of Aegis Media Asia Pacific:

“There’s a level of connectivity and trust in social relationships that plays an important part in the purchase decision cycle. This is more prevalent in Asia than other parts of the world.” – Dunmall

“Shoppers are accessing multiple screens for their purchase information anytime… This opens up more opportunities for marketers to reach consumers at several points along the way to influence their purchase decisions. Understanding consumers’ online behavior can help brands re-evaluate how they reach consumers at the right time and in the right way.” – Dunmall

“We are now in an inter-connected environment where consumers seek information from a variety of sources regardless of a brand’s involvement.  This makes it tricky for marketers – we need to listen more carefully and more frequently, and be able to adjust our approach in real time.” – Waters

Indeed, your target market has access to others’ reviews of products. Think of sites such as TripAdvisor, Amazon and CNET that offer third party reviews of things from holiday destinations to technological gadgets. If your product doesn’t deliver, people are going to talk about it. And they’re definitely going to notice if you start deleting negative reviews. There’s no running away from this. Scary, isn’t it?

Our recommendation? Address feedback. Be transparent. Converse. (No, not the shoe brand.)

It’s as easy as ABC.

And if your business runs in Asia but you haven’t tapped into the Internet to find out what if they’re talking about your brand or industry online, it’s time listen in to what’s being said to identify your strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats.