The 20th century has witnessed technological progress, which influenced almost all aspects of life. The shopping process and the relationship between customers and retailers are no exception. This paper aims to discuss the influence of online shopping on the crucial steps of the consumer decision-making process and review the pros and cons of using mobile platforms for making a purchase. The impact of the two major shopping days – Black Friday and Cyber Monday – on the consumer buying behavior will also be considered.
The consumer decision-making process is made up of 5 stages. They include need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision, and post-purchase behavior (Willman-Iivarinen, 2017). The search for information, evaluation of alternatives, and the purchase are affected most by m-shopping. Nowadays, the majority of large retailers have applications that facilitate online buying. When a consumer decides that he or she needs a service or a product, they may need to find information about it. Mobile platforms allow them to make this process more convenient. For instance, one may need to buy a product, so there is no need to ask somebody about the qualities of a certain good. Mobile apps offer the customer all the necessary details about the product, which are available by merely touching the smartphone screen.
In the next stage, prospective buyers compare possible options and decide which one suits them the most. Among the criteria for evaluation of alternatives are such parameters of the good or service as the price and the quality. It would take more time and effort to browse through choices in a brick-and-mortar shop, that is why a potential customer is likely to choose m-shopping. Mobile platforms provide the opportunity to compare the characteristics of different products immediately and choose the best deal without effort.
The purchase itself has altered with the advent of alternative types of commerce. There is no need anymore to waste time going to a shop, as one can buy everything without leaving their home. Duhan and Singh (2019) point out that mobile apps’ ease of use encourages people to employ them for grocery shopping. Indeed, the demand for buying groceries online seems to be increasing each year.
The easiness and accessibility of buying via the internet compel people to spend more money than they would spend in a physical store. The customer chooses a product and pays for it quicker, so they add more items in a basket. Furthermore, it appears that people tend to buy more when paying with a credit card instead of cash. The reason for it may lie in the absence of physical interaction with money, which is present when one pays cash. When using an app for making a purchase, this tendency becomes even more pronounced as the consumer does not have physical contact with money at all.
The modern world offers a wide range of buying opportunities. One can purchase virtually at any time and any place. I find it useful because people are not limited to certain opening hours and location. In light of recent events, this kind of shopping seems to have gained even more popularity as customers are limited to buying online. During the coronavirus pandemic, the commerce market has undergone dramatic changes. Retailers all around the world have had to adapt to the new conditions of self-isolation and lockdown. As a result, the amount of e-commerce sites has increased massively, and online sales have also grown. In my opinion, online shopping should be developed further, as the situation with the pandemic has shown that people are dependent on this type of commerce.
However, some people might prefer shopping traditionally, going to a physical store and choosing items by themselves, instead of ordering goods on the internet. This happens because people still need to see, touch, and feel the product before buying it. According to Moes and Vliet (2017), e-commerce has certain limitations since it cannot provide the customer with the physical sensation of the product. They state that feelings remain to be an essential part of shopping and propose certain solutions to the problem.
On the one hand, webshops have clear advantages in comparison with physical ones. The unlimited product range, extended opening hours, accessibility, and worldwide reach seem to lure a good part of consumers (Vliet et al., 2015). On the other hand, brick-and-mortar stores offer the customer personal contact with the stuff, option to try products out, and take them home immediately. As for me, online shopping is more convenient; that is why I prefer using mobile apps for buying goods.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the main shopping occasions of the year, which bring together thousands of customers. The difference is that on Black Friday, people gather in malls, and on Cyber Monday, they stay at home and purchase online. Statistics show that the rate of purchases made during these days spikes to enormous numbers. I believe that Cyber Monday is more beneficial to the customer than Black Friday as it allows people to shop from home, and, therefore, saves their time and money. In addition, due to the hustle and bustle that is invariably present on Black Friday, it would be better to choose Cyber Monday as a safer way to buy goods at a lower price.
All in all, alternative ways of shopping, such as e-commerce and mobile platforms, are becoming more popular around the world. It is evident that the consumer’s behavior has also altered with the advent of new technologies. Online shopping attracts customers with unlimited product range, accessibility, and extended opening hours. However, there are still adherents of traditional commerce for whom the process of shopping is more important than the convenience of new technologies.
References
Duhan, P., & Singh, A. (2019). M-Commerce: Experiencing the Phygital Retail. CRC Press.
Moes, A., Vliet, H. (2017). The online appeal of the physical shop: How a physical store can benefit from a virtual representation. Heliyon, 3(e00336).
Vliet, H., Moes, A., & Schrandt, B. (2015). The fashion retailscape: innovations in shopping. Amsterdam Creative Industries Publishing.
Willman-Iivarinen, H. (2017). The future of consumer decision making. European Journal of Futures Research, 5(14).