Who are the Showroomers? Socio-Demographic Factors Behind the Showrooming Behavior on Mobile Devices

Abstract

This quantitative study focuses on socio-demographic variables and their associations with different forms of showrooming behavior. The purpose of this study is to find which consumer groups based on age, gender, and income level are demographically the most probable showroomers, and how much each of these variables explain showrooming. The data used is a structured online survey from 1,028 Finnish omnichannel consumers aged between 18 and 75 years. We compare the means of demographic groups’ shares on different aspects of showrooming, and then use partial least squares structural equation modeling with confirmatory factor analysis to see how much each of the variables explain showrooming. The findings show that showrooming behavior is explained most by age, and that the most probable showroomers are younger consumers, higher income consumers and female consumers. The findings also show that finding information and better prices for the products are the most typical forms of showrooming.