New Research Into Global Online Buying Behaviour

From the products and services bought, to the devices being used to buy them – the Neilsen Global Survey of e-commerce polled more than 30,000 people in 60 countries.

It is no surprise that online shopping is growing. Online purchase intentions have doubled since 2011. It’s not just travel either. Nearly half of global respondents intend to make an online clothing purchase in the next six months (46%).

Just Looking or Shopping?

The research found that respondents who are in the market for clothes, event tickets, books and toys, or making reservations for tours and hotels, both browse and buy online.

There is also a strong correlation between online browsing and buying in other categories. For example, in cosmetics, 33 percent of global respondents say they browse, and 31 percent say they buy. Similarly, about one-third of global respondents say they browse and buy personal care products (31%/29%) and groceries (30%/27%). About one-fourth browse and buy pet products (24%/21%) and baby supplies (23%/20%), and roughly one-fifth browse/buy flowers (20%/18%) and alcoholic drinks (20%/17%).

New Markets…

Online browsing and buying percentages are similar in Europe, North America and the Middle East/Africa, with a few exceptions, based on availability and opportunity. In North America and the largely developed region of Europe, shopping options proliferate, and online retailing represents another channel competing for market share. On the other hand, in the Middle East/Africa region, lower-than-average online percentages can largely be attributed to opportunity—or lack thereof. In a region where disposable income is low and shopping for daily needs is the norm, online shopping is not a priority. Nielsen expects that will change as more consumers continue to move up the socio-economic ladder.

2014. The Year of Mobile. Again.

Computers are still the most popular device for online browsing and buying among respondents in all regions. However – mobile phones are a close second choice for respondents in the Middle East/Africa region, with 55% of respondents using the device for online shopping—11 percentage points higher than the global average of 44%. Similarly, mobile phone usage is popular in Asia-Pacific (52%) and Latin America (48%). One-third of European respondents (33%) and more than one-fourth (27%) of North Americans use their mobile phones to shop.

More information about the report can be found here…