It is no surprise that with the economic doldrums that consumers face in South Africa, shoppers in the country are constantly on the hunt for the best deals and discounts when making a purchase.
According to data revealed by e-commerce company, OneDayOnly.co.za, discounts and deals is the main driver of why consumers shop.
Laurian Venter, sales director at OneDayOnly.co.za, said, “The company’s data reveals that discounts and deals are the reason why 80% of consumers shop online. This makes sense when you consider that South Africans are the second-most price-sensitive society in the world.”
The rise of e-commerce can be attributed to businesses leveraging special offers and promotions to capture the attention of an increasingly digital-savvy consumer base and convert these casual browsers into loyal customers.
Fighting financial strain
A recent report found that 32% of South Africans have opted to shop online to get better deals, save on petrol and minimise shopping trips, which is unsurprising seeing that 41% say they are in a worse financial position than they were a year ago.
“In light of this, it’s understandable that the majority of online spending falls under the essential household items category. As a result of economic volatility, consumers are altering their spending habits to ensure they have sufficient funds at the end of the month for basic necessities like food and housing by pursuing promotions, taking advantage of discounts, and reducing discretionary spending,” Venter said.
The timing of a deal is also a key purchasing factor in today’s economic climate, with PwC’s South African Retail Sentiment Index for 2023 revealing that 99% of consumers say they are adopting behaviours that help them save money which includes delaying purchases until the items are on promotion.
Venter highlights that this ties into the rise of Black Friday in South Africa with sales spiking by 1952% compared to those on an ordinary day, especially as items are discounted by 56% on average.
“As households anticipate that inflation will increase to 10.7% over the next five years, coupled with salaries and wages only expected to rise by a mere 5% this year and next, consumers will continue chasing deals and discounts to make ends meet. But, with more at stake now, South Africans’ fear of missing out on these will likely be even stronger, meaning that businesses will need to cater to this demand or else potentially lose cost-conscious consumers to competitors who do – it could be a deal-breaker, so to speak,” Venter further added.
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