Teenagers may not be buying, but they are certainly researching their future purchases online.
While 89% of teens (ages 13 to 17) have never made an online purchase, nearly one-third (29%) investigate items on the Web before buying them at stores, according to a study by Jupiter Media Metrix, New York. Teens are also browsing with adults at online stores, visiting the same sites as older people, including favorites such as Amazon.com and eBay.
Jupiter analysts say that companies that want to attract the teenage demographic should allow users to set up and personalize their experience. Jupiter discovered that 42% of teens view personal Web pages set up by other users.
Teens spend the most number of minutes using the Yahoo and MSN portals and checking e-mail at Hotmail. They spend between 45 and 50 minutes per month at these sites.
Young people also spend a lot of time on eBay (52 minutes in April)–surprising considering they don’t have credit cards or checkbooks, said Jupiter. Adults spend more time–an average of112 minutes in April.
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