THE LAST WORD
Who's Shopping on the Net?
By Marcy Bruch

According to John Beck, a senior researcher who studies e-commerce at the Accenture Institute in Phoenix, Ariz., the average Internet shopper is someone who is relatively young (20s and early 30s), is highly educated (has at least a college degree), and is technologically savvy. Says Beck, "They are online virtually every day." Still, within that group, there are two distinct types of Internet shoppers. He categorizes them into the Global Class users and the Elite Class users. "Global Class users go online primarily to seek information and purchase packaged goods," he says. "About 98 percent of them use it to find information, 90 percent of them use it to research travel, and 85 percent of them use the Net to purchase books or music."

Beck says the Global Class users have their favorite sites, with Yahoo scoring the highest in popularity. Brands are important to Global users and they spend about $518 per year via the Internet. By contrast, the Elite Class users spend a total of $2,166 per year on the Internet. The distinguishing characteristics of the Elite users are that they spend more time surfing at home and average 13 hours per week online. Why should e-tailers care about the Internet Elite? "Because they are trendsetters for the Global Class and ultimately all online users. They most strongly influence others by recommending their favorite sites," says Beck. "Therefore e-tailers looking to gain critical mass patronage would be wise to cater to this group first."

The easiest way to get a strong following, according to Beck, is to analyze this group's buying behavior on the site, since it would provide valuable clues that raise the odds of purchase. Janet Ryan, an editor for ClickZ and expert in e-commerce marketing analysis, agrees. "The most successful e-commerce sites know how to collect, interpret, and use customer data. It's no wonder e-tailers with catalog-business roots have some of the most popular sites," she observes. "Data-tracking is the 21st century method of servicing the customer, since the efforts result in giving the consumer more personalized information," she adds. Beck points out that what distinguishes the Global Class users is that they cross a range of cultures and continents, yet their buying patterns remain consistent.

He concludes, "On the Internet, the technology results in a linear buying experience that is the same wherever your computer may reside. You seek information, you compare prices across Websites, you select a delivery method, you enter your credit card number. It's the universal shopping method of pick and click."