Nearly all of the consumers that shopped online during the 1999 holiday season will do so again, and half of those that didn’t plan to give it a try, a new poll from AT&T revealed.
More than three-fourths of the consumers surveyed indicated that security of their online information was a paramount concern that affected their willingness to shop online. Nearly half said they wanted Web sites that provided fast downloads, and better sense of where on the Internet items were located.
Consumers cited the experience of shopping in a store around the holidays as a draw: 44% said that shopping in a brick-and-mortar location put them in a holiday spirit, and 42 indicated that they liked taking advantage of sales.
Online retailers rated their 1999 holiday experiences as needing improvement. Only 40% said that their season had been “very successful” while 25% said that it had been “not at all successful.”
The Holiday E-xpectations: Business and Consumer Perspectives on Online Shopping During the Holiday Season Study was conducted through a series of random postings to consumers on AT&T’s WorldNet Service home page. Business leaders in a variety of fields were contacted by telephone.
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