Online the most powerful information source.
As summer approaches and Australians dust off their barbecues to ramp up their outdoor dining experience, latest research has found some interesting buying trends. Online has emerged as the most powerful information source, according to forecasting firm, BIS Oxford Economics.
“It is no surprise that the internet has become the most useful source of pre-purchase research for consumers,” senior manager, Paul Giles told AR. “Covering product reviews, brand sites, retailer website, blogger forums and social media networks, 42% of respondents nominated online research as their key source of barbecue information, up from 38% in our 2015 research”. Talking to family/friends was nominated by 16%, browsing in-store and speaking directly to retailers, each on 14%, also rated as useful sources of pre-purchase research.
And, when it comes to buying a barbecue, males influence the brand decision in 45% of cases, while 25% of the time it is a joint decision, closely followed by women in 24% of purchases. Brand preferences also differ amongst men and women. Men prefer BeefEater, Beefmaster and Matador, while women tend towards Gasmate, Weber and Beefmaster.
The study also found that almost half of barbecue consumers were replacing a broken or worn out unit, 28% were purchasing their first barbecue and 11% were buying an additional barbecue. Almost half of new barbecue consumers use it at least once a week.
Said to be Australia’s largest syndicated research study of over 6,000 households it showed that almost 80% of detached households use a barbecue.