Via comScore Inc., a new report for the first quarter of 2012 shows encouraging news for online retailers hit hard by the recession.
Online retail sales increased about 16.6% in the first quarter, to nearly $44.3 billion compared with $38.0 billion for the same period on 2011. This marks the tenth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and sixth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.
“While the economic recovery continues to be painfully slow, the channel shift to e-commerce appears to be accelerating,” says comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. “This presents opportunities but also challenges for bricks-and-mortar retailers if they can’t hold onto their offline market share in the digital world.”
The report also relates that e-commerce spending increased by at least 17% year over year in digital content and subscriptions, computer software, consumer electronics, jewelry and watches as well as event tickets.
During the first quarter of 2012 half of e-commerce transactions included free shipping, the highest percentage comScore has recorded outside the holiday shopping seasons. The firm says it has observed higher rates for free shipping only in the fourth quarter of 2011, when 51.8% of orders carried no shipping charges, and the fourth quarter of 2010, at 49.3%.
ComScore also noted in the report that it had surveyed tablet owners during the first quarter and found that 38% of them said they had made a purchase on their tablet within the past month. The most popular type of product? Apparel.
ComScore makes estimates of e-commerce sales based on tracking the online behavior of some 2 million consumers who agree to be tracked, about half of them in the U.S.
More from EcommercePartners.com : Ecommerce has Another Record-Breaking Quarter
With new figures released on ecommerce sales in the 2nd quarter, the top stories in the industry have covered the resiliency and positive growth of this flourishing market. The ecommerce industry has experienced another quarter of double-digit growth, which has prompted experts to consider how the ecommerce market can be expected to perform in the future. New trends have also been revealed, thanks to a new report, and mobile commerce sites will be more prominently featured on Google for those operating on mobile devices once a new initiative from Google has been put in place.
Online commerce is experiencing another quarter of tremendous growth, according to figures released by ComScore. Ecommerce sales have reached 43.2 billion in the 2nd quarter of 2012, which marks a 15% increase over last year’s ecommerce sales. This is the seventh consecutive quarter that the ecommerce industry has experienced double-digit growth. The Internet’s top sellers include digital content, flowers, and electronics, and free shipping remains an important selling point with almost 50% of transactions offering free shipment of merchandise. While ecommerce seems poised for future growth, experts are cautious about their expectations for the 3rd and 4th quarter due to renewed uncertainty over economic conditions.