Spire Research and Consulting was honored to participate at the GATES India ICT Reseller Summit 2016 as the content and research partner. The event was held in Pune from 16-18 February, 2016. The Summit is an initiative to provide a powerful business platform for consumer electronics and ICT brands to launch, develop and expand their network in the Indian sub-continent.
Japnit Singh, Senior Director at Spire Research and Consulting, highlighted the perception of customers who purchase products through e-commerce websites as well as the experience of online retailers with online market place associations.
Singh discussed research data and insights on customers’ with online purchases in the past six months and online retailers. The data was gleaned from telephonic surveys conducted (in December 2015) across six metropolitan cities, namely Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Chandigarh and Jaipur. The survey focused on customers’ purchase habits, preferred price range and product preferences along with frequency of shopping.
According to the survey, 83% of online shoppers fall in the 19-25 age category where price discounts (87%) are a strong motivator – with electronics (52%) and apparel (34%) being key growth categories. Leading e-commerce platforms include Flipkart (41%) and Amazon (34%).
Nonetheless, customers’ still prefer brick-and-mortar outlets over e-tailers due to many factors that include (additional) shipping charges, lack of post-sales support, poor product verification, the credibility of retailer, the need for human interaction and what are perceived as insecure payment gateways.
However, online expansion is crucial for retailers as online purchases impact sales revenue. Association with large e-tailers – with advertisement muscle – is more beneficial than set-up of individual websites. Moreover, if prices are the same across online sites, customers look for delivery, reliability and Cash-on-Delivery options as key differentiators.
Singh’s presentation deck on “India’s E-commerce Industry – Customers’ Perspective” can be found here.
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