There is no denying that online shopping has been on the rise in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region. However, given audience composition and online behaviors in the region, it is clear the industry must do more to be able to grow online shoppers.
This was further evident in the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and audience measurement company Narratiive’s ‘MENA Ecommerce 2018 Report’ that reiterated 40 percent of people living in the Middle East are shopping online.
The results of the survey shine light on online and offline shoppers, including demographic profiles, attitudes, purchase motivators and deterrents. Overall, the report found that online shopping is becoming more popular in the Middle East.
The report revealed the growing popularity of online shopping in the Middle East and showed that 42 percent of people who have not yet purchased online expect to do so in the next 12 months. Things that would encourage them is providing better product information, low-cost/free delivery and reliable payment methods.
As for people who shop online, 34 percent of the survey respondents reported that their e-shopping habit has increased over the past 12 months. Clothing, accessories, wholesale electronics and travel tickets make up most of the recently purchased goods.
Most of the online shopping is done after working hours, through home computers. Almost half of online shoppers indicated that much of their e-shopping takes place between 6 PM and 12 AM, with 58 percent of the purchases made on mobile phones.
“It’s telling that more than half of online shoppers in the report made their last online purchase using their mobile phones. This illustrates to brands how technology has become an enormous part of the daily lives of people living in MENA. This report is a strong indication to the extent of growth we can expect to see with ecommerce in the coming years,” said Chad Hussain, Commercial Lead – EMEAA, Narratiive.
He explained the challenge for merchants now will be to ensure their ecommerce solutions address consumer hesitations such as trusted payment methods and paying for delivery, and also emphasize the benefits of convenience, comparison shopping and greater choice in shopping online.
“The Middle East region is the fastest growing market in e-commerce. The UAE’s unique investment climate has encouraged many companies based in Dubai and the UAE to enter the industry. TRA’s ecommerce department is keen to promote economic development and technological innovation through clear and fair standards and criteria, in light of the applied global legislation on ecommerce,” added Mohammad Al Zarooni, TRA’s Director of Policies and Programs Department.
Mr Al Zarooni stressed that the TRA is keen to protect online customers’ rights and determine their obligations, adding, “The TRA works to encourage and facilitate electronic transactions and correspondence through reliable electronic records, and remove obstacles to ecommerce and other online transactions.”
The TRA is developing and promoting ecommerce by focusing on the development of regulatory frameworks for electronic transactions and commerce to ensure transparency of exchanges and consumer protection in ecommerce. It also strengthens the credibility of electronic transactions and commerce to build confidence in the integrity and validity of electronic transactions, correspondence and records, as well as contributes to the development of the digital economy of the UAE.
To conduct this study, Narratiive surveyed 3726 people within the MENA region. All responses were collected via an online survey served exclusively across websites who are tagged with Narratiive within MENA. There was no incentive for respondents to take the survey and all responses were completely voluntary.
