The significance of e-commerce in emerging markets
ABSTRACT
Consumer behavior towards e-commerce in India has undergone a significant transformation over the past few years. Electronic commerce, or e-commerce, has grown in popularity as more and more people have access to the internet and more and more people own smartphones. Convenience is one of the main factors influencing Indian consumers’ attitudes about e-commerce. People nowadays are always seeking new methods to save time and effort, and one of the biggest challenges they face is shopping. Customers love e-commerce because they can shop whenever it’s convenient for them, read reviews, compare items, and make purchases. Pricing is another major motivator for Indian consumers to engage in e-commerce. You can get great offers, discounts, and competitive pricing on e-commerce platforms that you won’t find in brick-and-mortar establishments. Consumers are becoming more price-conscious and deal-obsessed as a result of the ease with which they can compare prices and shop at various internet merchants. Consumer behavior toward e-commerce in India has been significantly shaped by the expansion of social media and online communities. There has been a dramatic uptick in the use of social media as a venue for product and service promotion, and users are increasingly seeking out these sites for expert advice. Online communities and forums provide a platform for consumers to share their experiences and opinions, creating a sense of trust and credibility around e-commerce platforms and products. The aim of the study is to analyze the perception of e-commerce among consumers and to understand the consumer behavior related to e-commerce.
INTRODUCTION
Online shopping refers to the practice of making purchases using an electronic medium, such as the Internet. One definition of “online shopping” is the act of purchasing goods or services through the Internet. Those that find it easy, practical, and enjoyable to shop online are the ones who will succeed. Online shopping has exploded in popularity in recent years because of the many advantages it provides to merchants and shoppers alike, including the ability to shop whenever they like, avoid making special trips to stores, save money on gas and lodging, reach a wider audience, and select from a wider range of products. One definition of “online shopping” is the act of purchasing goods or services through the Internet. Rural residents are just as likely to purchase online as those in the city. The ability to swiftly enter in the precise product one is searching for makes it simpler than ever to locate even the most complicated of all things in modern times. There’s no need to worry about the location, since logistics companies are now getting in on the action and helping to make sure their products are readily accessible everywhere. Indeed, many individuals would rather purchase online than at a physical store because of the various advantages it offers.
The internet has changed the way that consumers shop for and find products and services. In this dynamic era, digitization has emerged as the most cutting-edge practice. Every brick-and-mortar shop is racing to create an online identity in order to survive in today’s market. In addition to making actual purchases online, consumers also use the web to research prices, product attributes, and customer support choices. E-shopping, or online shopping, is a kind of electronic commerce in which a buyer makes a purchase from a seller using a computer and an Internet browser to transact the transaction. Online shopping is preferred by many consumers because it facilitates convenience and offers a wider selection than traditional retail outlets.
MARKETING MIX OF E-COMMERCE
The 4Ps of marketing, also known as the marketing mix, are essential components for any successful e-commerce business. They are:
Product: The e-commerce company’s wares are what this term references. Physical goods, digital goods, or hybrids of the two are all fair game in the realm of online commerce. Businesses engaged in e-commerce are responsible for ensuring that the goods they sell satisfy the wants and requirements of their customers.
Price: The price of a product plays a crucial role in e-commerce marketing. E-commerce businesses must set a price that is competitive and appealing to their target market while still allowing them to generate a profit.
Place: Place refers to the channels through which customers can access the e-commerce business and its products. In e-commerce, this includes the website, mobile app, social media platforms, and other online marketplaces where the business sells its products.
Promotion: Promotion involves the various marketing strategies used to attract and retain customers. This includes advertising, public relations, email marketing, social media marketing, and other forms of digital marketing that are effective in reaching the target audience.
E-commerce businesses must carefully consider each of the 4Ps of marketing to create a comprehensive marketing plan that will help them succeed in the competitive e-commerce landscape.
LITERATURE REVIEW
They look at how internet reviews influence consumers’ decisions to buy in Soonyong’s (2010) study. The authors focus on the question of whether or not there are disparities in how men and women react to reviews posted on various online shopping sites. Based on the data, it seems that females are more influenced by positive evaluations than men when making a purchase decision based on reading customer reviews online. Females are also more likely to be influenced by bad reviews than favorable ones (known as the “negative review effect”). These results have important repercussions for online retailers, as they provide insight into how to best use online customer reviews to attract and retain female online shoppers.
In two tests conducted by Guda Van Noort (2007), the effect of the retail environment on customers’ risk perceptions and regulatory emphasis was analyzed. They hypothesized that people would see internet buying as more dangerous than traditional purchasing, and that this perception of danger would promote a focus on safety. Study 1 demonstrates these effects by using self-report measures of risk perception and preventative attitude. Research 2 replicated the first, demonstrating that the impact of the online business went beyond just buying.
There was a study done by Seyed (2011) that looked at how individuals feel about purchasing tickets online (e-ticketing) and why some people utilize it while others stick to the more conventional methods. Furthermore, investigated are the motivations behind people’s propensity for or aversion to using internet access. Policymakers and companies may use the study’s results to understand the dynamic relationships between risk perception, familiarity, usefulness, user trustworthiness, and confidence via the study’s comprehensive framework. Another objective of this study was to get a better understanding of consumers’ viewpoints on issues such as price and internet safety.
KEY FINDINGS
- The results show the percentage of respondents who fall into each age group. From the results, 30% of the respondents are between the ages of 18 and 24, 21% are between 25 and 29, 26% are between 30 and 34, and 23% are 35 or older.
- From the results, 44% of the respondents identified as male, 32% identified as female, and 24% preferred not to say. This suggests that most of the respondents were willing to disclose their gender, with more males than females choosing to do so. However, a significant proportion of respondents chose not to disclose their gender, possibly due to privacy concerns or personal reasons.
- . From the results, 36% of the respondents shop online once a month, making it the most popular frequency. 26% of the respondents shop online once every six months, 22% rarely shop online, and only 16% shop online once a week. This suggests that a majority of the respondents prefer to shop online less frequently, with a significant proportion shopping online only once a month. However, online shopping is still a popular choice, with a considerable number of respondents indicating that they shop online once every six months or more frequently.
- It is found that majority of the people were somewhat satisfied related to the convenient shopping from ecommerce website, majority of the respondents were satisfied with the price offered by the ecommerce website, with respect to the wide variety of products the consumers were somewhat satisfied, majority of the people were also very satisfied with the discount offered by the ecommerce websites.
- From the results, 44% of the respondents trust online shopping platforms, while 26% do not trust them. A further 30% of respondents fall into the somewhat category, suggesting that they have some reservations about online shopping platforms but still trust them to a certain extent. This suggests that while a significant proportion of respondents trust online shopping platforms, there is still a sizable portion that does not trust them completely.
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