(Milwaukee, WI; December 11, 2002; PRNewswire) Smart shoppers do it better online, but they don't rely simply on the Internet to make their purchase decisions, according to findings of an Internet survey from The Dieringer Research Group, a Milwaukee-based marketing information and consulting company. The findings have potentially far-reaching implications for merchants, manufacturers and other advertisers.

The survey of 4,000 Americans found that the Internet is breeding a new kind of shopper who uses all media channels more intensively to seek the best information for personal shopping decisions. The Dieringer Research Group calls them "hyper-shoppers." The findings are from the 2002 version of the American Interactive Consumer Survey (AICS), an ongoing study from The Dieringer Research Group.

Approximately 13.5 million shoppers fit the description. They are defined as shoppers who spend at least $500 online and also spend $500 or more offline after first seeking information online. Altogether, they comprise about 19% of the 72 million Americans who now use the Internet in some way for shopping. Three out of five are men. They average five years of online experience.

"'Hyper-shoppers' are consumers who really understand how best to use the Internet for shopping," said Andrew Richardson, Senior Analyst at The Dieringer Research Group. "Strikingly, the survey reveals that they use more of every kind of media in purchase decision making depending on the type of product they are seeking."

Hyper-shoppers are significantly more likely than other shoppers to:

*Rely on print media to find Web sites for products and services

*Use high speed broadband online access

*Watch TV while also going online

*Go directly to manufacturer sites or retailer sites for online information

*Click on ads and make online or offline purchases as a result

*Use the Internet for music, movies and sports content

*Go online for customer service more often than using the telephone.

Not surprisingly, hyper-shoppers tend to be better educated, making them more skilled at finding and manipulating information. They also report a household income of $66,100, well above the U.S. median of $37,600.

"Online advertising revenue has fallen precipitously since the Internet marketing bubble burst, but it's a mistake to conclude online advertising is no good," Richardson concluded. He described the optimum goal for vendors as creating media strategies that combine multiple media channels and offer a mix of paid advertising and in-depth product content online to lead hyper-shoppers to their goods and services.

The Dieringer Research Group is a marketing information company that provides analysis and consulting to its clients. The company has surveyed thousands of U.S. consumers in-depth about Internet behaviors since 1995. More detailed survey findings are available to sponsors of the 2003 American Interactive Consumer Survey. For more information, contact: Mr. Dana Simmons, at (800) 965-4636, or dana.simmons@thedrg.com .

    Selected Media Used by Hyper Shoppers to Obtain Shopping Information
    (Percent of Hyper Shoppers who use it)
   
    1)     Search Engines                     90%
    2)     Retailer Web Sites                 77%
    3)     Manufacturer Web Sites             77%
    4)     Articles in print media            66%
    5)     Web addresses on products          57%
    6)     Print ads                          54%
    7)     TV ads                             52%
    8)     Online advertising                 40%
    9)     Online Yellow Pages                37%
    (10)   Online shopping email newsletters  31%
    (10)   Shopping bots or search agents     31%
   
    Source: The Dieringer Research Group, Milwaukee  www.thedrg.com