49% Indians prefer shopping on e-com portals

New Delhi: 49 per cent Indian consumers say online sites and apps became the preferred mode of shopping for them in the last 12 months, as per a Local Circles survey.

Safety from Covid-19 and convenience were cited as top reasons by consumers for using ecommerce. 69 per cent of those who shop on ecommerce bought groceries/essential supplies online.Consumers used large ecommerce platforms as well as small verticals or local ecommerce sites to purchase groceries and essentials.

As per the survey, feedback indicates shopping via ecommerce sites & apps has become a habit for 33 per cent ecommerce shoppers and their usage continues despite markets, retail stores and malls being fully functional and open. The survey said consumers are using services like Big Basket, Amazon Fresh/Pantry, Jio Mart, Flipkart, Grofers and a host of local ecommerce sites for essentials and groceries since March 20.

Consumers reported improvement in returns and refunds processing and ability to reach out to customer service of ecommerce sites and apps in the last 12 months. The highest number of consumers says free shipping for all orders and more effective and efficient returns and refunds process will make them use e-commerce sites and apps more for their purchases going forward.

LocalCircles conducted an extensive study which received over 130,000 responses from over 42,000 unique consumers located in 358 districts of India. 48 per cent of the study participants were from Tier 1 districts while 31 per cent were from Tier 2 districts and 21 per cent were from Tier 3, Tier 4 and rural districts.

49 per cent of consumers in the survey said they preferred "eCommerce sites and apps" for shopping in the last 12 months. 18 per cent said they "called local retail stores and get home delivery", 31 per cent "visited mall, local retailers, markets and shop there", while 2 per cent couldn't say.

The findings indicate that 49 per cent of consumers and their family preferred eCommerce for shopping, while 18 per cent called local stores and got home deliveries.

Among the reasons why consumers trusted eCommerce sites and apps in the last 12 months, more than before, 86 per cent of the ecommerce shoppers said "safe deliveries or no reason to step out", 50 per cent said "competitive prices", 48 per cent said "ease of return or return policy", 46 per cent said "expanded product selection", 45 per cent said "faster deliveries", and another 45 per cent said "increased product information and relatable reviews".

The findings indicate that "safe or contactless deliveries and not wanting to step out" was the top reason why consumers trusted eCommerce sites and apps in the last 12 months.