Amazon Continues To Grow Lead Over Google As Starting Point For Online Shopping

The grease in the value chain is convenience. JL

Taylor Soper reports in GeekWire:

52 percent said they start their online purchasing process at Amazon, which is up from 47 percent last year, and 38 percent from the year prior. That compares to 26 percent who say they start at a search engine. The trend toward Amazon and away from Google is highlighted even more so with younger shoppers aged 18-to-29, with 62 percent of respondents from that age group starting on Amazon versus 21 percent at a search engine.
Where do you start when shopping for something online? For a majority of people, it’s Amazon — not Google.
That’s one finding from a recent research report from Raymond James that surveyed 587 people about their online habits.
The study found 52 percent of respondents who said they start their online purchasing process at Amazon, which is up from 47 percent last year, and 38 percent from the year prior.
That compares to 26 percent who say they start at a search engine. This graph shows the changing habits clearly:

Via Raymond James.

The trend toward Amazon and away from Google is highlighted even more so with younger shoppers aged 18-to-29, with 62 percent of respondents from that age group starting on Amazon versus 21 percent at a search engine.

Via Raymond James.

Amazon first passed Google as the top destination for U.S. online shoppers in 2012, according to a Forrester Research report. In 2014, Alphabet Chairman Eric Schmidt said that Amazon was his company’s biggest search competitor.
Google, which makes a majority of its revenue via search advertising, is responding to Amazon’s growth by improving its shopping search results and ads while rolling out other shopping-focused initiatives.
The Raymond James survey also asked users about Amazon Prime, with 44 percent of respondents noting that they have a membership — which costs $99 per year — and plan to keep it, up from 33 percent last year:

Via Raymond James.

The strongest Prime membership adoption was for the 30-to-59 year old age range. Of the respondents who have a Prime membership, 88 percent said they use it for free 2-day shipping, and 44 percent said they use it for video content:

Via Raymond James.

The survey was assessed prior to the holiday season and asked folks where they were most likely to spend the most for holiday shopping. The responses show how much Amazon dominates the retail landscape:

Via Raymond James.

Amazon, with a market cap of nearly $400 billion, is now worth more than these 10 retailers combined: Macy’s, Kohl’s, Sears, JCPenney, Nordstrom, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, Dillard’s, Gap, and Target.