Online, Holiday, and Male Shopping On the Rise
October 20 2005
One in ten of the world's population now shops online, according to a new global survey from ACNielsen. In separate studies, the National Retail Federation (NRF) predicts a 5% increase for US spending this holiday season, and GQ magazine finds US men increasingly succumbing to the pleasures of shopping.
The NRF 2005 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch amongst 7,726 consumers, found that the average US consumer plans to spend $738.11 this holiday season - an increase of 5.1% since last year. It also predicts that consumers will spend an additional $86.62 on themselves - rising to $108.87 for the average male.
Books, CDs, DVDs, videos, and video games remains the most popular category, with 55.5% of consumers hoping for one of these items. 54.4% hope to receive clothing or accessories, and 38.4% would like a gift from the consumer electronics category.
More than a third (37.9%) say sales or price discounts are the most important factor deciding where to buy. Consumers plan to shop at a variety of stores this holiday season, with discounters (71.4%) and department stores (59.4%) at the top of the list. The popularity of online shopping continues to grow, with almost half (42.6%) of consumers planning to purchase gifts online, up from 38.3% the previous year.
ACNielsen's Online Consumer Opinion Survey
The ACNielsen study focuses solely on the growing online retail market, polling more than 21,100 respondents in 38 countries from Europe, Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America and South Africa. It estimates that more than 627 million people - one tenth of the world's population - have shopped online, and that more than half of those (325 million) have done so within the last month.
Products bought online
Findings include the following.
- More than a third (36%) of online shoppers mention books as among the last three items they purchased online. This rises to 56% in China and 50% in South Korea.
- 135m people (22%) have purchased DVDs and/or video games. This is the biggest market in the UK, mentioned by 34% of online shoppers.
- Close to 135m (21%) made plane reservations online. This figure is much higher in Malaysia (55%), New Zealand (40%), Singapore (36%) and Australia (35%).
- 128m (20%) bought clothes, shoes or accessories.This category fares better in France (32%), Germany (30%), Sweden (27%), the Netherlands (26%), and Belgium (25%).
- More than 112m paid for music downloads and/or CDs.
- 106m purchased electronic devices.
- Almost 98m bought computer hardware.
- 86m made hotel and/or tour bookings.
Frequency of online purchasesThe highest incidence of online shoppers is in
Europe and North America. Topping the list are Germany, Austria and the UK, where at least 95% of Internet users have purchased online. In the UK and Germany, about two-thirds of these people have made a purchase within the last month. Online shoppers in North America made an average of four purchases in the last month. In Europe, this figure is five, rising to six in the UK and seven in Germany.
In
Asia Pacific, South Korea and Taiwan have the highest proportions of online shoppers, with at least 90% of respondents having shopped online. Across the region, online shoppers have made an average of five purchases in the last month.
Latin America registers the lowest purchase record, with an average of only three purchases in the last month.
Payment methodsCredit cards (59%) or bank transfers (23%) are used to pay for most online purchases. In Europe, India and Japan, cash-on-delivery (COD) is the second most common method, following credit cards. In China. COD (34%) is the most common method, followed by bank transfer (31%), and credit cards (26%). However, when asked about preferred methods, credit cards (24%) came second to COD (32%) in China. The study suggests this indicates an unmet need for online credit card payment facilities, also found in Russia, France, Poland, South Korea, Japan and China.
Experian's Customer of the Future studyThis survey, launched in the Netherlands at an Experian and Pleon congress, provides more insight into differing online and shopping behaviour in Europe.
The research finds that the Dutch consumer leads the way in the use of new media in Europe, especially broadband (used by 34%) and online banking (30%). The Irish, with only 3% use, are the lowest broadband users in Europe, and only 1% of Greek consumers bank online.
Perhaps linked to the reliance on the Internet, Dutch consumers feel little need for a 24-hour economy, with only 50% wanting shops that are open in the evening and on Sundays. The Irish (80%) are the most in favour of longer opening hours.
Another finding from ACNielsen's analysis of the online market is that the purchasing habits of men and women are fairly similar - with the exception of Greece, Portugal and Spain, where many more men than women shop online.
GQ says men love to shopMale shopping habits are also the subject of a new study of retail executives conducted by RWA Research for GQ magazine. According to the survey, US men are becoming more confident and independent in their shopping habits. The new findings suggest that men shop for fun and leisure, and are far more likely to buy their own clothes than they were even four years ago.
The findings include the following.
- 84% of men buy their own clothes (compared with 65% in 2001).
- 52% of the retailers surveyed report that their male customers shop at least once a month (10% in 2001).
- An estimated 64% of men buy electronic products for themselves, 53% buy their own watches, and 50% buy fragrances and grooming products.
The companies are online at
www.bigresearch.com ,
www.acnielsen.com ,
www.experian.com and
www.us.gq.com .
All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.
