A new study by performance marketing technology company Criteo has identified a “clear shift” in UK consumers’ online shopping habits when it comes to fresh groceries.
Criteo analysed over 100 million online searches between April and June 2017 and found that online searches for groceries increased by 108% compared to the previous quarter.
Grocery items now represent 12 of the top 50 most popular search terms, reflecting the fact that shoppers are now able to rely on supermarkets and other suppliers for faster, more accurate delivery options.
The analysis revealed that searches for everyday essentials like milk, bread, cheese and eggs all increased in the second quarter, with online searches for ‘milk’ alone increasing by 92% from the first three months of the year.
Furthermore, as online grocery shopping continues to grow, shoppers are opting to use more familiar search functionality over general browsing.
“Grocery shopping is reaching digital maturity at an incredible rate” commented Ben Cooper, Managing Director for Europe at Criteo Sponsored Product. “The speed at which shoppers are using search as a discovery tool for their online grocery shopping is quickly starting to reflect more established retail segments. This means that retailers and marketers must adapt the ways in which they are engaging with these customers. Milk and bread will always be common purchases but the increase in searches online for these items points to a clear shift as online convenience starts to rival that of offline supermarket shopping.”
Earlier research by Criteo found that 7% of all grocery shopping in the UK is now done online and 40% of all online grocery purchases are made on mobile phones.
