Online shopping: A growing trend in Nigeria

ONLINE shopping has become a major trend among Nigerians today, especially the youths. People of middle age and the elderly are not left out in the use of online shopping platforms. The introduction of the internet has really encouraged the use of online shopping in Nigeria. Internet usage among Nigerians keeps increasing. As Marshall Mcluhan, a Canadian professor, philosopher and public intellectual would have it, the world is becoming a “global village”. According to some online sources, in 2013, Nigeria had more than 56 million internet users, the largest in Africa. Of the 115 million mobile telephone subscribers in Nigeria, 35 million used their handheld devices to access internet data services. The wide range of internet usage has made online shopping a trend in recent years. An online shopping survey by Philips Consulting in 2016 revealed that virtually all respondents (97%) shopped online at least a few times per year, up from 2014’s value of 75 per cent. The Nigeria Business Communities survey of 2016 also revealed that three quarters of the Nigerian respondents use the internet for online purchases (food, clothes, phones etc.).

Online shopping is also referred to as electronic commerce or electronic business that gives consumers the privilege to buy and sell products (goods, services and ideas) on the internet with the use of mobile phones, tablet or a computer. Consumers of a particular product can easily visit any online shopping website and search for preferred products on the website, check the price of the product, make series of comparisons, click on the desired product and agree to the terms and conditions of the website. The delivery options are also provided as well as billing for the product through the use of customers’ debit cards or via mobile banking applications. Most online stores receive payment on delivery of the product. Transactions made online can be cancelled easily when consumers feel they are no longer interested in a product.

Online shopping is done completely on the internet and, therefore, customers do not have to go to shops to get the products they want to purchase, whereas in physical stores, customers must go to a shop to get the desired products, which can be stressful. Physical stores do not have much choice for customers because the products desired might not be available and the buyer might buy other products or wait till the desired product is available. However, in the case of online shopping, consumers have many options. There is availability of any product: it all depends on the consumer. Online shopping platforms have different products available to consumers, unlike physical stores in which a wide variety of products may not be sold in one place. Consumers must move from one shop to another, which is time wasting.

Online shopping is transparent because customers can compare the prices of products over different websites to ensure that they get a cheaper rate. In physical shopping, customers purchase products based on the seller’s price. In Nigeria, online shopping websites differ, depending on the variety of products to be purchased or sold. Some online stores basically sell general products like phones, clothes, electronics, food items, among others. Other websites sell specific products . A few online stores link up buyers and sellers of a particular product for business purposes. Online shopping offers convenience. Consumers can make purchases from the comfort of their homes without going to shopping malls to get products. Online shopping gives consumers the opportunity to shop 24 hours a day and seven days a week, which means that there is no time consumers cannot purchase products online. Comparison of prices and products is allowed in online shopping: customers are free to compare different products, the price tag, the features and specification of the product. This also saves time. Customers tend to avoid the stress of queuing up in shopping malls to pay for a product. Online stores give better prices for products.

Also, online stores offer discounts, coupons and rebates to customers depending on the season: the Black Friday deals, Christmas bonus and so on. Varieties of products can be got in online stores depending on the customer’s choice. Sending of gifts to friends and family is enhanced through online shopping. Customers can purchase gifts online and they will be sent to their friends and family, both far and near. Gifts can be sent for birthdays, Valentine’s day, Christmas, wedding etc. But there are drawbacks, for instance, delay in the delivery of products. Consumers  select products online and purchase them within a few minutes, but the delivery to their doorstep then becomes a main issue. At times, it may take up to two or three weeks or a month before the product is delivered to the consumer. This tends to frustrate consumers and prevent them from shopping online.

Customers need to see and touch the product they want to purchase, but in online shopping, this is not possible. For instance, a shoe or cloth, when it is delivered, might not be the size the consumer chose online. In fact, the product might not be authentic. Furthermore, online shopping does not give customers the opportunity to negotiate the price of a product. Some customers believe that shopping online won’t give them shopping experience (from physical stores); they view shopping from malls as fun and they tend to interact with attendants and pick from the displayed products. In addition, some customers refer to shopping online as fraud. This is as a result of the disappearance of some shopping websites. Online payment is not secure because of the rate at which cybercrimes increase everyday.

• Osobajo writes in from AdekunleAjasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State.