Canadian Web Buyers Boost Social Media

Canadian Web Buyers Boost Social Media

JULY 17, 2007

Customer reviews hold weight with Canucks.

Canadian online buyers are heavy users of social media, according to a J.C. Williams Group study sponsored by
Visa and Yahoo! Canada. The study was conducted in April 2007 among both online and offline buyers in Canada.

More online buyers used networking tools and platforms to share
opinions, insights, experiences and perspectives than those who
purchased offline.

Online buyers were more likely than those who did not buy
online to have written a product review, posted a video to the Web or
written a blog.

Six in 10 online buyers said that consumer reviews were their
most trusted information source. Only 31% said they trusted newspapers
or magazines most.

Getting Canadians to purchase online is still a challenge. More than
two-thirds of Canadian Internet users like to shop online, but only 53%
are willing to buy online. eMarketer projects Canadians will double
their online spending for retail goods to $16 billion by 2009, from $8
billion in 2006.

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