According to PwC’s “Total Retail Survey 2016” report, higher proportions of Thai, Malaysian and Singaporean consumers are new to online buying than the global average.
The report, which surveyed 500 consumers per country, revealed that about half of Malaysian respondents buy online at least monthly and only 7 per cent have never shopped online.
Southeast Asian consumers are relatively new to the online marketplace, with nearly three-fifths of respondents in Malaysia reporting they shopped online only within the last three years.
“Based on patterns we’ve seen in other countries, there is a good amount of room for growth,” said PwC senior executive director Scott Constance. For instance, “more than 80 per cent of China respondents have been buying online for more than three years.”
Online shopping in Malaysia is poised for significant growth, given its rising popularity and relatively new adoption rate among local customers.
Nearly three-quarters of Malaysian respondents use social media to access promotional offerings while shopping.
Southeast Asian consumers are also among the world’s fastest and strongest adopters of mobile and social media usage in support of their online and in-store purchasing activities.
“Whatever the mobile or social media purchase usage, whether it is using a mobile phone to check product reviews or prices, or accessing coupons, or making purchases outright, it’s likely that consumers in Southeast Asia are doing it more frequently than just about anyone else in the world.”
(Image credit: Traveldilse.com)
(Source: NationMultimedia.com)