1. Trends in e-Commerce

 
 

Research report 'e-Commerce' in Belgium (Comeos, 2014)

Detailed report can be downloaded from: https://www.comeos.be/files/docs/E-commerce-2014.pdf
  • Comeos represents Belgian businesses and services. The members of Comeos are active in 18 sectors and sell either to companies (B2B) or directly to consumers (B2C). Together they account for 11.2 % of the GNP and employ 400,000 people, making them the biggest employer in the private sector. Comeos provides custom services for its members and wants to encourage dynamic businesses as a knowledge and networking platform.
     
  • Goal of this research report: to get more insights in Belgium’s e-commerce market and to generate PR-input.
     
  • Questions:
  1. What is the online buyer’s profile?
  2. Which products are bought online?
  3. Which sectors have the highest potential?
 
 

1. E-commerce experience

 
  • 75% of online population makes online purchases
  • 3% of Belgians made first online purchases last year. That’s 330,000 new customers
 

2. Current online shopping behaviour

  • More monthly purchases: +4% increase
  • 50% of customers spent more than 100 euros online last month
  • On average, we spend 161 euros a month online
 

3. Online purchases

  • Fashion is a volume generator
  • Food and Films/TV are highest potentials
  • Only 1% of today’s online customers will ‘certainly NOT’ buy again
  • Top 5 consists of  Clothing / shoes, Hotel / Overnight stay, Books, Event tickets, transport tickets
  • Bought more:  Clothing / shoes, Fun fair tickets, Pharmaceutical products, Sports products toys
  • Bought less: Computer, hardware and software, Boat, plane or train tickets, Books, Event tickets
 

4. Sector focus

  • Price and convenience remain main drivers for e-commerce.
  • The top 5 drivers are: Because it saves time, lower prices, delivered to my door; shop 24 hours a day, access to special discounts, promotions...
  • Website satisfaction increases
  • The largest amounts are spent in the electro, interior and/or do-it-yourself sector. Online shoppers spend the least on books and the entertainment sector. 
 

5. E-Commerce trust

  • 43% prefers a Belgian website - that is a 7% drop
  • … but 80% still prefers websites with offline counterpart
 

6. Internet problems

  • 4 out of 10 cases of internet problems concern payment issues …
  • … and 1 out of 4 cases never gets solved
 

7. Attitude

  • 1 out of 3 is willing to promote on Social Media to get a reduction …
  • 22% is ready for m-commerce …
  • But payment safety and screen size are barriers
 
 
 

Source / read more: comeos.be