The internet gives more and more consumers worldwide access to a huge amount of information before making their purchases and in the meantime it facilitates their transactions.

Now through this, consumers are looking for and getting better informed about the products they are interested in and choose to shop electronically due to greater comfort, variety of choices and good value-for-money products.
More specifically, consumers in Asia, North America and Western Europe are choosing e-commerce for their purchases. Indicatively, 8 out of 10 Americans are now online buyers with 79% of those having made an online purchase of any type. In addition, 62% of US consumers who use the internet, shop online at least once a month, via smartphones (50%) and tablets (60%), or by using electronic coupons (33%).
In addition, according to a survey by Mintel, 48% of online American buyers occasionally increase the size of their orders to receive the products without paying the shipping cost (free shipping minimum). By way of example, 80% of consumers surveyed in the US are more likely to buy a product as long as transport costs are free, while 64% of them are more likely to buy a product when return or change options do not entail any burden on them.
In addition, 8 out of 10 Americans (83%) say they are satisfied with their online experience, and in particular with the convenience of the transaction (81%), the variety of brands and products offered (80%) and the options to complete a purchase (payment) (73%).
Additionally, 36% of online American buyers are conducting research on various sites to find the product they want at the lowest price.
It is worth mentioning that 84% of online buyers in the United States look at least one social media tool (77% facebook) to find recommendations for the product before buying online, while 60% of those would like to receive an incentive (e.g. discount) from a brand before the purchasing decision.
The most popular products that American consumers choose to buy online are electronic devices (69%), books (67%) and clothing (63%).
Consequently, modern American consumers are increasingly turning to e-commerce and using digital devices and platforms to make their purchases, while placing a particular emphasis on the value factor and online reviews and recommendations before making any online purchase.
Sources: www.invespcro.com, www.pewinternet.org, www.mintel.com