Online shopping is increasingly becoming the norm for online audiences in South Africa with findings from the Effective Measures 2017 E-Commerce Industry Report revealing that 80% of online shoppers have either maintained or increased their online shopping habit over the last twelve months and 46% of SA offline shoppers reportedly believing that they will make an online purchase within the coming year.
The survey offers insight into consumers’ attitudes towards online and offline shopping and their respective purchasing processes.
The results reveal online purchasing frequency, the most commonly purchased products, the main deterrents for online shopping and specific motivators that could convince offline shoppers to trade brick and mortar stores for online.
For this report, Effective Measure surveyed 8,751 respondents in South Africa between July and August 2017, and refers to those who’ve never made a purchase online as offline shoppers.
Here is what you should know about how South Africans are shopping online.
- 46% of respondents have shopped online.
- 25% of online shopper respondents are above 60 years old. 63% of offline shoppers are under 40.
- Those who shop online tend to be high income earners that work full time – over 35% earn above R30,000 a month. 60% of offline shopper respondents earn a monthly income below R20,000.
- The most popular online purchases are items that don’t require delivery time and are available almost instantly, such as travel tickets.
- Convenience and price remain the primary benefits of shopping online. The biggest barriers include a trusted payment method and a better shopping experience, from easier to use websites to more product information.
- 66% shop online at most once every three months, and 6% shop online at least once a week.
- Delivery is not a major concern for online shopper respondents. 88% were fairly or very satisfied with the speed of delivery of their last online purchase.
- Over 50% of online shopper respondents research using social media and price comparison sites. Their research isn’t only conducted online – 30% browse in-store before buying online.
- Cash is king for offline shoppers. 43% prefer to pay with cash and believe having it as a payment option would make them feel more comfortable shopping online.
- Close to half of offline shopper respondents think they will become online shoppers in the next year, and 23% believe they will be persuaded by an online-only discount offer.
