WELLINGTON: Educated, middle-class women are the future of
online shopping in China new research has claimed. A survey of Chinese internet
consumers by New Zealand's Lincoln University found that well-educated employees
were more likely to shop online than any other group, possibly a result of
their computer literacy and ready access to internet technology. And female
consumers were more likely to shop online than their male counterparts, a trend
the researchers said was becoming increasingly pronounced. This means that
online retail trends in China will be dictated by educated women.
In the 2014 survey, it was also noted that the online
shopping behaviour of friends and family was a major influence on e-shoppers,
but especially on women. Lincoln University's senior lecturer in marketing
Michael Clemes said that with China's population spending around 1bn hours
online each day, it was important to understand the decision-making process and
behaviour of on-line shoppers. She notes the uniqueness of online retail trends
in China by observing that even though it was among the fastest growing sectors
in the world, the proportion as compared to the country’s total population is
extremely low.
On factors that drive online retail trends in China, the
study highlighted service and security as key factors influencing Chinese consumers’
decision to shop on line, the New Zealand Herald reported. "With the right
kind of research, the e-shopping experience can be dramatically improved,
thereby going some way to retaining current customers and sourcing new
ones," Clemes said. The researchers suggested that marketers consider
providing computer training courses to prospective customers or increasing the
provision of public computers, and to consider providing on-line forums and
chat rooms for female consumers to share their experiences.
High-income Chinese consumers were found to be much less
inclined to shop online, possibly, said the researchers, because they preferred
to physically examine the more upmarket products they were buying and to take
advantage of support services offered in a store.
Data sourced from New Zealand Herald; additional content by
Warc staff; and http://expertresearchers.blogspot.com/
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