We know everyone loves a bargain but new research has shown that shoppers are being more careful than ever when parting with their cash.
'Highliners' are a new and increasingly common breed of shrewd shoppers who research online to ensure they have the best possible price, before hitting the high street to make their purchases.
The ‘highliner’ shopping phenomenon has been identified by Dr Brian Young, consumer psychologist, University of Exeter and PriceRunner.co.uk, the price comparison service.
Highliners have emerged as a new type of shopper with 32% of the adult population now regular users of price comparison services.
Before making any significant purchases, highliners research both the features and benefits of the items against similar products, as well as the best price online. However, they are keen to buy on the high street to retain the excitement of walking out of a store laden with bags.
Chatting with store staff is another key attribute of a highliner – they want to glean as much information and advice as possible from in store experts, before making the final decision.
“For highliners, part of the shopping experience is knowing that they have secured the optimum price for a product, and with this comes peace of mind and a feeling of achievement. They are smart with their money and it’s a normal part of the way they like to buy things, to spend a few minutes online. Recent research shows that two thirds (68%) of people prefer to research online before buying in store.
Britons are more comfortable buying online than ever before, with £3.465 billion spent online in April 2007 - up 55% year-on-year.” Said Dr Brian Young
“Some of our customers tell us that they use their valuable time in a better way, searching online for what they want, rather than spending hours pounding the pavement looking in vain for the best deal - ultimately they are using the internet as their high street and it is where they prefer to window shop.
Once they have done this, they print off their research findings and head off to the high street to check out the item for a final time before they hand over the cash. To meet the need of these savvy shoppers we have created PriceRunner in your Pocket, allowing people to check prices on their mobile phones, whilst on the move.” Said Gary Goodman Director of Mobile Technologies, PriceRunner UK