Why Search Precedes Purchase Decisions for Canadian Moms

Online search is a fairly standard tool for finding anything from directions to a restaurant to conducting price and feature comparisons on a new refrigerator. So it’s no real surprise that Canadian moms head online to conduct research about potential purchases large and small. And in particular, they go online to learn more about consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands—ingredients, recipes and other stuff—prior to buying.

Research conducted by Google Canada and OTX in March and published in June indicates that 81% of Canadian moms are searching for information before they head to the store. Search is their No. 1 online source, followed by email, maps, retailer websites and social networking sites.

The study “Canadian Moms Click for CPG” surveyed 4,896 women ages 18 to 75 in Canada including 3,806 moms to find that 76% indicated that search engines helped them learn more about consumer packaged goods (CPG). Those items include food items (grocery and fast-food), baby and childcare products, household and personal care brands, appliances and more.

The data for Canadian moms vs. US moms reveals similar patterns, according to Chantal Rossi, industry manager for retail, Google Canada. For example, in the US, 50% of moms expect popular CPG brands to be at the top of the search results page vs. 51% in Canada and new moms tend to be online more frequently. Other similarities include moms preference for hopping online early in the morning and late at night: “Moms are digital snackers, they come online whenever they get a few minutes,” Ross says.

The bottom line? Rossi says the overwhelming majority of Canadian moms are researching online to influence an in-store purchase. “Consumers recognize that CPG brands and retail websites have information online and before they go into the store, they can gather important information.” The research, she says, verifies that moms’ purchase decisions are influenced by information they obtain online before they get into the store. “The shelf might be the first moment of truth, but online is the zero moment of truth,” Ross adds.