Internet shopping keeps growing

A survey has found that more than half of polled consumers shop online at least once a week, local media reported Friday.

The survey, which randomly polled 2,000 consumers online from the end of last August to mid-September, found 65 percent of respondents spent more money than the previous year shopping on the Internet, according to a press release from the Shanghai Commercial Information Center.

Respondents spent more money on clothing than any other kind of product or service, followed by mobile phone recharge credit and household appliances.

About 70 percent of respondents said they preferred shopping online because of the wide selection available. Nearly 63 percent said they preferred shopping online because it was cheaper, and about 41 percent said it was more convenient.

Shopping websites such as taobao.com and tmall.com maintained a clear advantage over similar online platforms. About 64 percent of respondents reported shopping on taobao.com; 59.8 percent had shopped on tmall.com and 44 percent had shopped at jd.com.

About 45 percent of respondents said it was more comfortable to shop in brick-and-mortar stores. About 46 percent said they could find a wider selection of goods in stores.

About 40 percent believed that brick-and-mortar stores offered higher quality goods.

The Xujiahui area attracted more consumers than Shanghai's other commercial zones, the press release said. More than 18 percent of respondents liked shopping in Xujiahui. Nearly 14 percent preferred Lujiazui. Nanjing Road East, Xintiandi and Nanjing Road West also appealed to respondents.

The survey results also showed that 58.2 percent of respondents received sale promotion information from websites or other online sources, 3.5 percentage points higher than those who got their information from older media such as television. One-third of respondents got their sale information from social media.

About 73 percent of respondents preferred straight discounts on their purchases as opposed to getting higher discounts for making larger purchases.