Young moms: e-commerce focus for marketers | Key4Communications |

Growth estimates from eMarketer report that business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce sales worldwide will reach $1.5 trillion in 2014, increasing nearly 20% over 2013. And young moms should be an clear e-commerce focus for marketers. According to a Nielsen study, the baby supply category is really taking off in China, Korea, France, the U.S. and the U.K. to name a few countries. “While durable and entertainment-based categories are showing a substantial rise in intent, consumable categories like pet supplies and baby supplies are also gaining traction quickly,” said John Burbank, President of Strategic Initiatives, Nielsen.

For example, of the top 10 most popular categories sold online in China (based on Nielsen e-commerce sales figures), sales of baby supplies already comprise three categories. In Korea, baby supplies make up two of the top 10 categories and in France, five. Actually, diapers and infant formula make up the largest portion of online sales compared to online and offline sales.


Latin Americans browse and Asia-Pacific respondents buy

By regions, the appetite for online browsing is strongest in the largely developing regions of Latin America and Asia-Pacific. The biggest difference? Latin Americans browse and Asia-Pacific respondents buy. In fact, while online browsing rates are highest in Latin America, online buying rates for the region are the lowest for just about every category in the study. Conversely, online buying rates in Asia-Pacific are the highest of any region. Regarding Europe, North America and the Middle East/Africa, their online browsing and buying percentages are similar.

Online purchase also depends on the product. The most popular e-commerce categories, not surprisingly, are non-consumable—durables and entertainment-related products. Nielsen reports that almost half of global respondents in an online survey intend to purchase clothing or make airline or hotel reservations using an online device in the next six months.

Other categories growing in prominence for online shopping include e-books, event tickets, sporting goods and toys, to name a few. The online market for buying groceries and other consumable products is comparatively smaller, due to the hands-on buying nature and perishability of the products, —but is starting to show promise.

“Consumers everywhere want a good product at a good price, and the seemingly limitless options available in a virtual environment provide new opportunities for both merchants and consumers”, said Burbank.