Online Christmas conversion rates to rise by a third

Analysis from worldwide price comparison technology provider Become Europe revealed that the number of purchases made by UK shoppers grew during Q4 2013 by 34% on the rest of the year.

Over 30,000 online shops were analysed, and 2014 is predicted to follow the same pattern as the festive season approaches. With online Christmas conversion rates increasing by a third.

In Q4 2013, the most popular gifts were photographic and video products, resulting in a 182% increase in the rest of the year’s sales volume. Sporting goods took the second-highest place, with purchases growing by 125% over the same period.

The period of the analysis looked at conversion rates from Q4 in 2013 compared to the rest of the year in the UK, Germany, France and Italy.

Michael Rausch, general manager for Become Europe commented: “There is still enormous scope for growth given around 80% of all purchases are still made directly from the high street in the UK. With the widespread emergence of shopping services in 2014 such as click and collect making buying online so convenient for the customer, retailers are continually refining their services in line with consumer demand and we expect to see the same, if not higher conversion rates online this Christmas.”