A global survey of 20,000 consumers by Worldpay has discovered that buying power in the internet age is highly concentrated within a group of high spending, high frequency Super-Shoppers. In China, Super-Shoppers make up just 5% of the general population yet accounted for an incredible 92% of all the money spent buying physical goods online in China each month. Worldpay’s research into three Asia Pacific markets further reveals that APAC Super-Shoppers are some of the most likely to shop online via a mobile device and some of the most demanding when it comes to payment method.
Worldpay polled 2,000 consumers in each of the 10 countries covered by the Why Do They Pay That Way? Study including China, Japan and Australia. Key findings include:
- Chinese Super-Shoppers are more likely to use a credit or debit card than the average Chinese shopper.
- More than 60% of Japan’s online shoppers will switch to another retailer if they can’t use their preferred payment option at checkout.
- Australian Super-Shoppers were the world’s second biggest buyers, spending on average more than £200 (US$260[1]) during their last online transaction.
- The Chinese are the biggest mobile shoppers in the world, with 33% of Super-Shoppers making their last online purchase via a mobile phone.
- Australian Super-Shoppers had the second highest levels of mobile shopping (19%).
Phil Pomford, General Manager Asia Pacific, Global eCommerce at Worldpay, said: “With ecommerce markets developing at lightning speed across the Asia Pacific region, it’s no surprise that elite shoppers are taking their spending power online. The Super-Shopper trend is driven by a growing middle class, high mobile penetration and recent advancements in consumer technology. APAC Super-Shoppers are passionate about what they buy and sophisticated in how they shop. They do research to find the most competitive prices, and will turn elsewhere if they discover they can’t use their preferred payment method at checkout.”
Around the world, 36% of Super-Shoppers said they had experienced the situation of reaching checkout and being unable to pay with any of the listed payment options. This was particularly the case in China, where 44% of Super-Shoppers said they were unable to make purchases using their preferred payment method.
When faced with not being able to use their preferred payment option, Super-Shoppers may buy the same item from another website or abandon their purchase all together. A staggering 61% of Japanese Super-Shoppers said they would switch to another retailer if unable to use their preferred payment option at checkout. Worldpay estimates that for each lost sale globally, retailers are missing out on as much as £100 (US$130) – representing a significant amount of lost revenue from such frequent and high value shoppers.
Super-Shoppers in APAC, as around the globe, overwhelmingly preferred credit cards, even in markets where card use is low. Although 41% of the general population in China prefer to pay online with Alipay, only 18% of China’s Super-Shoppers said they were likely to use their nation’s most popular eWallet. Instead, 54% of Chinese Super-Shoppers said they preferred to pay with a credit card.
Pomford added: “Retailers should be looking at Super-Shoppers as a distinct group that often behaves very differently from other customers. In APAC, Super-Shoppers prefer credit cards even where these cards have little or no traction among the general population. Therefore, a retailer who doesn’t support the right range of payment methods could actually be losing major revenue without noticing.
“The Super-Shopper phenomenon gives retailers much food for thought – in terms of not only what payment options are available, but in how to merchandise to these consumers to maximise basket size, or market to an audience who thinks of online shopping as a daily task, not just as an occasional treat. With so much buying power concentrated in this group in APAC and around the world, it’s essential that retailers innovate in such a way that they deliver what Super-Shoppers want, when they want it and let them pay for it in the way that suits them best.”
APAC Super-Shoppers’ most frequent purchases vary from country to country. According to the Worldpay research:
- One in 5 (21%) Australian Super-Shoppers buy groceries online – 8% above the global average.
- 2. Australian Super-Shoppers are less likely to buy clothes online (21%) than the global average (28%) yet more likely to buy health and beauty products (15% vs global average of 10%).
- China leads the world in online meal purchases, with 13% of Chinese Super-Shoppers taking to the internet when they want to order a takeaway.
- Super-Shoppers in China also love fashion, with 40% of them buying clothes the last time they shopped online, compared to the global average of 28%.
- In Japan, Super-Shoppers are most likely to buy electronics (30%) and groceries (28%).