Over half of US female Internet users ages 25 and older say the Internet is their main research source for checking out potential product purchases, according to Burst Media's "Online Insight" report, published June 2007.
The Internet was named far more often than other methods. Around 10% or fewer of respondents said they got their information from "asking family and friends," newspapers and magazines, television or other sources.
Over half of women said they had shopped online in the past six months. Online shopping increased with household income. About half of respondents with annual incomes of less than $35,000 had bought something online in the past six months, while 68% of households with annual incomes of $100,000 or more had done so.
Major online buying categories for women in the past six months included travel, adult clothing and health and beauty products.
Although women consider the Internet a prime source for product information, they use slightly fewer Websites on average in their research than men, according to Frank About Women's "Understanding Online Shopping Behavior Topline Summary," published in March 2006.
Adult female Internet users typically visited four or more Websites in the course of doing product research, while men used an average of nearly five.
Learn more about marketing for women with the Web. Read the eMarketer Women Online: Taking a New Look report.