Making smart choices in online shopping comes as a priority for Filipino consumers.
The Philippine e-commerce is directly benefiting from the rising middle-class, tech-savvy and millennial population as the majority of them are active in different social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
To understand the online behaviour of Filipino consumers, iPrice Group analyzed more than 1,300 merchants in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries including some of the biggest players in the region like Lazada, Shopee, and Zalora.
The Southeast Asian state of e-commerce report 2017 found that the Philippines had the third highest share of mobile traffic in Asean with 71.25 percent. However, the country’s purchase rate was only 0.8 percent in mobile and 2 percent in the desktop.
Compared to the rest of the region, the Philippines ranked one of the lowest in terms of both mobile and desktop retail purchases.
While the results could indicate a lagging factor in terms of consumer penetration, the country’s average total amount spent (basket value) suggests that Filipinos’ confidence in online shopping is high.
Analyzing the macro-perspective of the Philippine economy, the country has one of the lowest GDP per capita ($2,951.07) in Southeast Asia (which is closely related to basket value). However, its basket value in online shopping (the minimum average spending) is the second highest in the region with $56 (P2,887) per order, after Singapore with $91 (P4,736).
Meanwhile, ‘A Path to Purchase’ report 2017 found that Filipino consumers first do a series of searches particularly from price comparison, product reviews, and videos before purchasing a product.
The mode of payment in e-commerce also largely influences purchasing activity in the country. A majority of local and international e-commerce platforms offer easy payment such as cash on delivery which is the second most common payment method.
As most online shoppers are millennials, a credit card is now the most common payment method in the country. Based on the State of E-commerce report, about 95 percent of e-commerce merchants in the Philippines offer credit card payment method. This is followed by cash on delivery with 80 percent.
The report was prepared by iPrice Group, which is operating as a one-stop shop e-commerce aggregator across seven markets in Southeast and East Asia with price comparison as a key feature.