Mobile shopping continues to accelerate, and free shipping offers have added to its agility. Consumers spent $161.5 billion on ecommerce in 2011, including $49.7 billion in the last three months alone.
Ecommerce spending improved 13 percent in 2011 compared to 2010, with online shopping surging 14 percent year-over-year in the fourth quarter, according to a recent research report from Comscore.
What’s more, a record 52 percent of those transactions included free shipping. The previous record was Q4 of 2010 at 49 percent.
“The fourth quarter of 2011 capped off what was yet another strong year for online retail, one in which every quarter achieved double-digit increases versus the prior year,” said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. “In the face of continuing uncertainty regarding the U.S. economy, consumers increasingly went online for their shopping needs. Price and convenience continue to be the critical value drivers for e-commerce, and unless those conditions change we can expect to see more channel-shifting to online in 2012 and perhaps even an acceleration in the current growth trend.”
That fourth quarter growth splurged due to 10 individual days surpassing $1 billion in online spending, led by Cyber Monday (Nov. 28) at $1.251 billion, followed by Dec. 5 at $1.78 billion, and Green Monday (Dec. 12) at $1.133 billion.
The report also noted that martphones continue to play an increased role in online shopping, with consumers researching products online even while physically shopping at a store.