Appinio Research · 12.12.2022 · 9min read
What’s the best-known online marketplace in the UK? Undoubtedly, Amazon. 95% of Brits have heard of the e-commerce giant from the USA and despite frequent criticism of Amazon in the media in recent years, have a positive opinion of the company. This is also confirmed by their buying behaviour: 90% of Brits surveyed say that they have already purchased something from Amazon and only 17% could imagine themselves living without using the online marketplace for a year. These statistics are all the result of our Amazon Shopper Report 2022 by Remazing and Appinio. In the following post, we explore the most important insights from the survey and provide tips on how Amazon Vendors and Sellers can best use the study to maximise their results.
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Britain’s best-known online marketplaces
Amazon is a shop window, product search engine, and marketplace
Gone are the days of Amazon solely existing as a marketplace: those who visit the e-commerce giant nowadays do not always have a specific purchase intention - more than half of surveyed Amazon.co.uk customers visit the platform even if they have no concrete intention to buy. The majority of customers use the site most often to compare prices (32%), read product reviews (23%), or get an overview of available products (23%). 43% of respondents said they use the online marketplace only when they have a clear intention to buy.
Reasons for using Amazon in the UK
Where do Brits start their online product searches?
Interestingly, even if no specific product is being searched for: the overwhelming majority (63%) of Brits start their search on Amazon rather than on Google or other search engines; and among weekly online shoppers, this figure is as high as 86%. This trend is also reflected in searches for specific brands. With only 28% of searches started, the brand's own online stores are far behind Amazon (62%).
The majority of online product searches by British consumers start on Amazon
Remazing tip
Having a strong presence on Amazon is essential for brands. Our results show that brands in the following categories in particular benefit from having a strong presence on Amazon: Electronics, Books & Toys, and Household Goods. Amazon should be seen increasingly as a branding channel with significantly higher visitor traffic than a brand’s own online store. In addition, it’s important to remember the platform does not have to be used exclusively as a revenue-generating sales channel and therefore, we recommend optimising Amazon content, product detail pages, and Amazon Brand Stores to also help best grow your brand’s presence on the online marketplace.
The most important criteria for British Amazon shoppers when making a purchase
For 83% of British Amazon shoppers, price is an important to rather important factor when making a purchase decision. However, many aspects that can be more directly influenced by brand manufacturers, such as product descriptions, also have priority for 76% of shoppers. 74% of consumers responding to the survey say they find fast shipping on Amazon important.
The most important criteria for British Amazon shoppers when buying products
Remazing tip
Brand manufacturers should take advantage of Amazon’s content possibilities to attractively present their products and increase both awareness and sales on the platform. An optimised Amazon product description next to the Amazon bullet points provides great added value for both brands and shoppers: the USPs of the product and the brand can be quickly identified by the consumer, and are more likely to be associated with the brand’s presence on Amazon. Additionally, the use of generic Amazon keywords is an essential component and significantly increases the Amazon ranking of the corresponding product detail pages. Elsewhere it’s becoming more and more apparent that the optimisation of images and Amazon product videos is inevitable considering the increasing number of shoppers browsing Amazon on mobile.
Mobile First on Amazon
67% of British Amazon shoppers regularly use their smartphones to make purchases from the e-commerce giant, and as many as 87% of 25-34-year-olds use the Amazon app to do so (further Appinio research shows that shopping is progressively moving online).
Shoppers’ preferred device for browsing Amazon in the UK
Remazing tip
Our results indicate that mobile shopping is present in all age groups. Therefore, optimised mobile-first content with large, attractive images and adapted titles should be a major priority. In addition to graphical optimisations, the appropriate adaptation of the keywords used is particularly important. Shorter, more concise texts are required and the title should also be designed with a mobile view in mind so that important keywords are placed at the beginning.
Generic keywords are essential for brand-name products
How can brands maximise their visibility and sales? One thing they must consider: the preferred search terms that Amazon shoppers use on the site. Although the brand of a product is important to very important for 69% of surveyed shoppers when making a purchase, only 38% use branded keywords when searching for a brand-name product on Amazon. 62% of British Amazon shoppers enter generic search terms in the search bar on the online marketplace.
Use of brand keywords and generic keywords by shoppers on Amazon
Remazing tip
Brands should not rely solely on the “pull” of their brand name when optimising their content for SEO, but should also actively seek to implement generic Amazon search terms for higher placement in SEO rankings. Using appropriate keyword tools can help to locate those critical keywords that help boost product visibility.
Conclusion: Using Amazon as a branding channel
In summary, the selling of products on Amazon should no longer be the sole reason for a brand’s presence on the online marketplace. How a company presents their brand on Amazon is equally important as we see shoppers turning to Amazon first for their queries ahead of other search engines. As a shop window, the online marketplace offers brands the opportunity to present themselves and their products in an appealing way to create a better customer experience. Shoppers in the UK say they chiefly use the marketplace to compare prices, read product reviews, and gain an overview of products. A brand's Amazon listing can be elevated to new heights by implementing the right generic keywords, as well as by optimising its content for mobile.
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