Digital Seniors' Use of Online Shopping

〈 Publication Date: March 12, 2012 〉

DENTSU Digital Senior Lab continuously conducts various surveys.

Following previous Insight Memos ( vol.8, vol.12 ), this time we introduce the online shopping usage trends of digital seniors.

① Approximately 60% of the digital demographic use online shopping

When asked "What do you do on the Internet using a PC?" to the digital demographic (seniors in their 60s to early 70s who use the Internet),

【1st Place】"Purchase goods/services via online shopping" (59.7%)
【2nd Place】"View other people's (individuals') blogs/websites" (51.7%)
【3rd Place】"Reserve tickets" (48.3%)

The results show that approximately 60% already use online shopping.

This shows that digital seniors routinely handle online shopping, which helps conserve physical energy and time (see Graph 1).

Incidentally, regarding what items digital seniors purchase online, past interview surveys frequently cited items such as "regional specialties (crab, tea, famous sweets, etc.)", "books they read in the past", "gifts for grandchildren (toys, clothes, etc.)", "cosmetics", and "supplements".

【 Graph 1 】

 

② Digital Seniors Are "Price-Conscious" When Online Shopping

Next, when the same digital demographic was asked, "If you were to shop online using a computer or mobile phone, what points would you consider important?" (a format where respondents could select up to three items they considered most important from a list of options), the results were:

【1st Place】"Being able to buy the same product cheaper than in stores" (55.7%)
【2nd Place】"Reliability of product information" (46.0%)
【3rd Place】"Trust in online payment security" (42.3%)
【4th Place】"Trust in the company providing the product" (37.7%)

(See Graph 2).

Although seniors are often perceived as having greater financial means, they actually possess a highly "price-conscious" side, revealing their expectation that online shopping will provide low-cost access to products.
Regarding the 2nd to 4th most important factors, it is clear that product information, payment methods, and the "reliability" of the company are highly valued. This suggests that the fundamental premise of trust in both the products and the companies involved is crucial.

As shown above, it is clear that senior citizens have also entered an era of active online consumption.

【 Graph 2 】