Retail in Asia

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Singaporeans most likely to give negative online shopping review

Singaporeans have a reputation for complaining. Now, there’s a study that proves it. According to research conducted by iPrice and Trusted Company, which analysed 30,000 e-commerce reviews in Southeast Asia, online shoppers in Singapore are on average the least happy with their online shopping experience and the most likely to leave negative feedback on the e-commerce website.

On average, Singaporeans gave a rating of 2.9 out of 5 stars for their overall online experiences, compared to Indonesians who are on average were the happiest with their e-commerce experience, with a rating of 4 out 5 stars.

Consumer complaints singapore part 1 - Retail in Asia
Singaporeans were also the most demanding e-commerce client, said the study, with 29% of shoppers requesting a refund, due to higher expectations on e-commerce stores. Malaysians were the least likely to request to refund, despite a negative experience, with only 8.3% taking action.

SEE ALSO: Chinese e-commerce complaints up 14% in 2016

Moreover, Singaporeans were 25% more likely to ‘yell’ in a negative consumer review, using capital letters to do so, compared to Malaysians. Indonesians were 100% more likely to provide a higher rating in their reviews, compared to Malaysians, despite the fact Indonesians were 104% more likely to mention fraud in their feedback.

Consumer complaints singapore part 2 - Retail in Asia

Meanwhile, consumers in the Philippines were more likely to leave a negative review of their local e-commerce players as compared to Malaysians.

As a geographic segment, the younger generation in Southeast Asia  — that is, post-millennials – have higher e-commerce expectations compared to their older counterparts. And are more likely to complain. Reviewers under the age of 20 are 13% more likely to give lower rating than those between 25 and 30 when it comes to complaints.

Consumer complaints singapore part 3 - Retail in AsiaFinally, when it comes to a positive e-commerce experience, Singaporeans are also the most likely to share their joy with family and friends when expectations are met or exceeded. They are 200% more likely to express their elation compared to Indonesians, report authors said.