SHOPPING IN THE 21ST CENTURY
The results of the research on internet trade in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which included 3,000 people of all ages, were published.
The results of the Shoppers Mind survey, conducted in cooperation with the public opinion polling agency Valicon, were presented yesterday in Sarajevo by the eComm Internet Trade Association.
The research was conducted as part of the MarketMakers project supported by the Government of Switzerland, and the presentation of the results was attended by those involved in internet sales, marketing and media. Customers were asked about their experiences with online shopping in order to improve this form of shopping.
Research results
The research confirmed that generation Z (people aged 15 to 25) has a large share in online shopping, but it was also established that the baby boomer generation (people aged 59 to 68) increasingly shop online. The attached graph shows the age structure of customers on the Internet and how much each of them buys in domestic and foreign stores.
It is noticeable that customers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as those in Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia, most often buy clothes, shoes, electronic devices, cosmetics, etc. The attached graph shows the most frequently purchased products and their average price.
What BH. customers differ from those in Croatia and Slovenia is the share of card payments. It was indicated that there is considerable mistrust towards card payments and that the majority prefer cash on delivery, i.e. payment when the goods are delivered.
Benefit from research
It was concluded that internet trade in Bosnia and Herzegovina is intensifying and that its development will be stimulated by this research. The president of the eComm Association, Jasmin Marić, explained in more detail what this research will mean.
“Without clear indicators, it is difficult to manage and determine the direction of promotion, education and advocacy of topics important for internet trade in Bosnia and Herzegovina. With this research platform, all local and regional actors will be offered a regular insight into internet shopping habits”, he pointed out.
According to Marić, companies will manage their internet promotion and sales channels better and more effectively, development and public institutions will know which market barriers to address through projects and policies.
“The association will monitor the most important indicators and thus work more successfully to improve the local market and cross-border trade. Other actors involved in online trade will also find valuable information in these statistics. Banks, card companies, post offices and courier companies, marketing agencies focused on digital advertising and others,” he adds.
Ambassador of Slovenia Damijan Sedar and member of the Management Board of NLB Bank and president of the Association of Slovenian Businessmen in Bosnia and Herzegovina Juro Pehljan addressed those present at the presentation of the research results.
