Typology of Indian e-buyers: clustering on the basis of online shopping motives

Abstract

The exponential growth in people having access to the internet has led to the dramatic increase in e-buyers. As in conventional retailing, consumers in the online setting vary in their preferences and choices. Marketers tend to address this diversification by segmenting consumers into homogeneous groups. The objective of this study is to identify and profile the segments on the basis of shoppers' online shopping motives. Primary data was collected using a survey questionnaire, administered to online shoppers in India. For identifying clusters of respondents and profiling shoppers, two-step cluster analysis was applied. The findings of the study supported the presence of two unique e-shopper segments. The segments, indifferent shoppers and involved shoppers, varied considerably in terms of their online shopping motivations. Based on the unique characteristics of the two segments, online retailers must carve different marketing strategies to attract and retain them ensuring optimum allocation of marketing expenses. The findings of this research may be used as guidelines for the development of strategic framework by online retailers.