Online Shoppers Looking For Lower Prices

Building online commerce? Luring first-time shoppers is your hardest sell -- and strategic discounting your strongest tool. While 35% of the online population purchased a product or service this last year -- and 95% of those plan more shopping soon -- the other 65% will resist, shows a newly released study from Jupiter Communications and NFO Interactive. Forty-five percent of "browsers" (who visit commerce sites but don't purchase) and 84% of "non-shoppers" (neither browse nor shop online) say they're unlikely to begin buying online in the next year. Their quibble isn't payment security; it's price. Most say greater discounts would spark buying. But don't slash across-the-board. "Aggressive pricing on select items will get customers in the door," says Evan Cohen, group director, data research at Jupiter. Online consumers also browse extensively for input about products sold off-line, the study shows.