With 63 percent of 'netizens' attempting to satisfy their shopping appetite anytime, anywhere through the internet, a new wave of online shopping is catching on in China. And considering the phenomenal increase in internet penetration, China is poised to become a huge market for shopping in cyberspace, according to a recent study by ACNielsen, the world’s leading marketing research and information company.

The twice-yearly global ACNielsen Online Consumer Opinion Survey, the largest of its kind, polled over 21,100 respondents in 38 markets from Europe, Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America and South Africa. The study asked Internet users around the world about their online shopping experiences including when they last made an online purchase, what items were last purchased, the method(s) of payment used, what payment card was used the most for online purchases and the most preferred payment method when shopping online.

"Our recent e-commerce studies clearly show an upward trend in global online shopping, with China experiencing rapid growth in line with global trends." said Glen Murphy, Managing Director at ACNielsen China.

Up to 63 percent of internet users participating in ACNielsen’s survey confirmed that they had made at least one purchase on the internet. Compared with a global average 77 percent online shopping rate, and 70 percent for Asia Pacific, China was dwarfed by many countries in terms of online shopping penetration.

And also we can find from the study of China Internet Information Center, China’s internet penetration (7.9%) is skewed toward well-educated male teenagers or young people in their early twenties. This is unlike many other countries.

Books are the most popular items purchased on the internet

Across China, the most popular items purchased on the Internet are Books (56%), followed by Videos/DVDs/Games (24%), Music (23%) and Clothing/Accessories/Shoes (23%). Around the globe, China ranks the top where people purchases books through internet.

That has much to do with the profile of the majority of online shoppers, who are most likely young students or those who just graduated from college, according to ACNielsen.

"Youngsters form the majority of online shoppers in China, and not surprisingly, their shopping patterns have created a strong impact on the overall online shopping trend", Murphy commented.

Findings on payment methods study represent both a challenge and an opportunity for payment card issuers

In terms of the payment methods used for online shopping around the world, China is unique with cash-on-delivery (34%) as the most used payment method, followed by Bank Transfer (31%). Credit card ranks only third (26%) in this market and is followed closely by Money Transfer (23%).

"These finding are consistent with our recent regional and country-specific consumer studies, which indicated that a major concern in lesser developed markets is the safety of online--and offline--payment methods, while in more developed markets, online shoppers are demanding more sophisticated payment methods,” said Murphy. “This represents both a challenge and an opportunity for payment card companies and their competitors to understand exact usage drivers as they evolve differently in each market."

When asked about preferred payment method, cash-on-delivery again topped the list with nearly one third of people (32%) surveyed preferring to pay by cash. Credit card was preferred by up to a quarter of respondents (24%), followed by Bank Transfer (13%) and Debit Card (12%).

In addition, in Asia Pacific, Visa is most used for online purchases in all markets while in China where the local brand, China Union Pay, is used by over half of respondents (52%).

Online shopping in China is poised for further growth

Although the current single digit internet penetration means online shopping is still limited to certain consumer groups, China’s massive population, and the growth rate in internet penetration – described by ACNielsen as ‘phenomenal’ – creates a huge market potential.

According to China Internet Information Center’s figures, up to 2005 the typical Chinese internet user is young, unmarried, college educated and male. More than half of Chinese internet users were below 25 years of age, with students making up nearly a third of all netizens. The average time people spend online around 13.4 hours a week, and two thirds surf the web from home.

The fact that China’s online shoppers are well-educated youngsters carries plenty of marketing implications, according to ACNielsen, as the young generation grow up and become the mainstream of the society, their shopping habits will have significant impact on the overall shopping trend in the next five to ten years, according to Murphy.

(Source: acnielsen.com.cn)