Exploring Consumers’ Propensity For Online Shopping In A Developing Country: A Demographic Perspective

Abstract

The advent of the Internet continues to open new frontiers in digital marketing. One visible impact of the Internet in marketing has been the growing increase in online transactions which profits marketers and seemingly satisfies customers. However,in developing countries, the potential of online shopping has not been fully explored, and in some cases, are just non- existent. Lack of online infrastructure has often been attributed to the slower growth in online transactions in Africa, however, the customers’ preparedness and inclination to use the service is ignored. .Against this backdrop, this study seeks to analyze consumers’ propensity to engage in online transactions with a focus on demographic attributes such as age, gender and education. Using customers in Ghana as a case study, key reasons as well as the demographics that fancy online transactions are revealed. The results indicate that delivery problems, poor internet connection, privacy and security issues are some of the reasons preventing customers to shop online.