New e-commerce consumer is low income

By Sylvia de Sá

People who think that e-commerce is a territory little known by low income are deceived. More than price surveys, emerging consumers have used the internet to purchase products, especially from categories such as home appliances and electronics. The competitive values offered on the web and the ease of installment are some of the factors that have motivated the consumers of these classes to buy online.

According to an e-bit survey, of the total number of people who first purchased a product online in the first half of 2011, 61% had a family income of less than R $ 3,000. The numbers are indicative of the fact that the pyramid base is more connected and consuming: in 2009, 44.6% of e-consumers in the Brazilian market belonged, at best, to class C. This picture changed and in the first half Of this year, the percentage rose to 46.5%, corresponding to about five million new consumers.

“The popularization of the Internet and e-commerce has attracted a broader consumption profile, which starts to buy products with a medium-sized ticket, such as a washing machine and a refrigerator. The emerging consumer has at its side the installment, the perception of lower prices and convenience, “explains Alexander Umberti, e-bit Marketing Director, in an interview with the World of Marketing.

Female majority

Regarding the profile, the majority of new consumers are female, with 55% of the total number of new entrants in class C. The average age is between 35 and 49, the most representative range for e-commerce as well one all. According to the e-bit survey, the Southeast region has the largest share of the new low-income e-consumers, with 64%, followed by the Northeast and South, with 14% and 12%, respectively.

The increase of positive references about the experience of consuming online, whether from friends, relatives or even users of social networks, has been contributing to the growth of purchases made on the Internet by classes C and DE. Basically, the difference between these consumers and those at the top of the pyramid is the frequency of purchases.

While the average electronic retail ticket in the first half of 2011 was R $ 355.00, the low income spent R $ 320.00 per purchase. When analyzed only the people in this income bracket who made their first purchase in the same period, the average value is even higher: R $ 340.00 against R $ 330.00 in 2009.

Great players lend credibility

If on the one hand the emerging consumers buy more expensive items, with a longer time interval, on the other, the top of the pyramid is present in almost all categories of e-commerce, which explains the proximity of the average ticket. “Class AB buys everything from the same products as C, such as refrigerators and LCD TV, to more mundane items such as medicines, perfumes, books, CDs and DVDs,” says e-bit Marketing Director.

Despite the similarity in the behavior of all social classes, categories such as books, magazines and newspapers are not so representative between the base of the pyramid, while telephony and cellular gain more prominence in the purchases of consumers of this income range. Another important move to increase the online purchases made by the emerging ones is the arrival of great players of the retail in the internet.

In the last three years, Brazilians have seen networks such as Casas Bahia, Walmart and Carrefour launch their virtual stores. But, contrary to what most may think, the C and DE classes are not inclined to buy only at retailers that are also present at physical outlets.

“Realizing the presence of these brands is important. Emerging consumers are beginning to explore the internet and understand that there are other ways to trust a store. When a big brand comes to the web, the consumer thinks that if it is on the internet, it is because the online environment is safe. The internet as a whole gains credibility, “says Umberti.