Study: Women more involved in home electronics purchases

August 31, 2004
Ninety percent of women shared equally or made the decision for home electronics purchases in 2004 compared to 79 percent in 1998, according to the Customer Focus 2004: Home Electronics study by Vertis, a provider of advertising, media and marketing services.

"Age is a significant factor that influences women's involvement in the purchase of home electronic products," said Therese Mulvey, vice president, marketing research at Vertis. "The results of the study show that 35 percent of women [ages] 18-24 plan to purchase wireless devices in the next 12 months, compared to 21 percent of women ages 25-34."

Twenty-nine percent of the female home electronics chief shoppers surveyed said they plan to purchase software in the next 12 months, and 21 percent plan to purchase office technology, such as a printer or scanner. The study also found that women ages 18-24 and 25-34 are more likely to purchase digital cameras.

Additional findings reveal that advertising inserts are the medium used most often by home electronics shoppers when deciding to make a purchase. Twenty-eight percent of total adults surveyed indicated that advertising inserts or circulars most influence their buying decision, compared to 22 percent who said that television had more of an impact. Eighty percent of the respondents who expressed interest in special financing said they read multiple store inserts before deciding to purchase.

Besides price, 40 percent of home electronics chief shoppers surveyed indicated that brand name was the most important factor when purchasing home electronics such as a home theater, large screen, HDTV or a digital video camera.