Comscore Sees Continued Shifts in Online Retail Interest During Coronavirus Pandemic

Visitation to Events & Tickets category down 75 percent since February 2020, while visitation to Home Furnishings category surged more than 90 percent

RESTON, Va., May 14, 2020 - The latest insights from Comscore (Nasdaq: SCOR), a trusted partner for planning, transacting and evaluating media across platforms, show that while certain retail categories saw significant decreases in visitation and consumer spending, overall spending and visitation to online retail increased across desktop and mobile in March 2020 compared to March 2019.

As shelter-in-place orders remain in effect across many U.S. states, the Events & Tickets category continues to struggle, seeing weekly visitation at levels 75 percent below February 2020. Meanwhile visits to domains in the Home Furnishings category were up more than 90 percent during the week of April 27, 2020 versus the week of February 3, 2020, likely due to people investing in home improvements while staying home.

Retail category weekly visitation

Looking at individual domains, prior to the peak of the pandemic outbreak, early March 2020 visitation to top retail domains looked relatively similar to visitation in early February 2020. However, by late March 2020, visitation trends shifted dramatically.

Top retail domains

Overall, consumer spending in online retail across desktop and mobile was up 13 percent in March 2020 versus March 2019. The CPG/Grocery category has seen an explosion in spending, up over 90 percent in March 2020, as consumers flock to online food delivery services. In line with the significant drop in visitation, consumer spending on Events & Tickets was down over 50 percent year over year. Based on visitation trends Comscore has seen so far for April 2020, spending could fall even further for the Tickets category.

digital spend by retail category

About Comscore
Comscore (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a trusted partner for planning, transacting and evaluating media across platforms. With a data footprint that combines digital, linear TV, over-the-top and theatrical viewership intelligence with advanced audience insights, Comscore allows media buyers and sellers to quantify their multiscreen behavior and make business decisions with confidence. A proven leader in measuring digital and TV audiences and advertising at scale, Comscore is the industry’s emerging, third-party source for reliable and comprehensive cross-platform measurement.

Media
Marie Scoutas
Comscore, Inc.
press@comscore.com

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