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Online Shopping Hits Record Levels

Thursday, 19 March 2009, 2:55 pm
Press Release: The Nielsen Company

Nielsen Online New Zealanders seek better prices on the Internet

Auckland, 19 March 2009: Bargain hunting on the Internet is on the rise with more New Zealanders than ever heading online to shop, according to a survey by Nielsen Online.

Nielsen Online's latest Online Retail Monitor quarterly report (Q4 2008) shows the proportion of online shoppers aged 18+ in New Zealand has increased from (39%) percent of the population in Q4 2007 to 45 percent in Q4 2008. The adult online shopping population now stands at a record 1.4 million.

Nielsen Online Research Director, Tony Boyte, says "The trend towards online shopping is spread across most categories; however the most popular continue to be airline tickets, books/magazines, and clothing followed by other travel related services such as car hire and accommodation.

"It is also interesting to look at purchase conversion rates following research via the internet. While it is expected that there will be high online conversion for airline and entertainment tickets, we are also seeing strong results for sports equipment, collectibles, books, clothing and toys. Stronger offline conversions following online research are being found in categories such as insurance, home appliances, food/beverage/wine and consumer electronics."

Boyte continues; "Our research is clearly showing that the challenging economy means more and more consumers are focused on getting better prices and a better deal overall. The Internet has rapidly become the shopping option of choice to achieve these goals."

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"In addition, more and more people say they are 'saving time visiting shops' and 'avoiding sales staff and crowds' which shows that consumer time is at an ever increasing premium and a further significant driver for shopping via the web," adds Boyte.

For further information about Nielsen's most recent Online Retail Monitor report, please contact Tony Boyte, Research Director, Nielsen Online, New Zealand at 09 970 4143 or tony.boyte@nielsen.com .

ENDS

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