South Africa: South Africans retailers focus on frictionless experiences

World Wide Worx, with the support of Mastercard and Standard Bank has published key findings regarding online retailers’ preferences in South Africa.

According to the study, 90% of the surveyed companies mentioned they coped with extra demands caused by the pandemic, while over 60% of the respondents claimed their technology can handle increased traffic on their ecommerce platforms.

The biggest challenge the 101 retailers participating in the study mentioned was managing customer queries and challenges, which was cited by over 53% of the respondents. As ecommerce boomed in South Africa during the pandemic, many online retailers struggled with increased demands and disruptions to supply chains, which is why they were forced to make additional investments in technologies to keep their customer base.

As far as what retailers focus on when it comes to customer experience, 98% of the surveyed companies said good customer service, while 90% of them mentioned good user experience. Quality of the products and pricing were cited by 83% and 73% of the respondents, respectively.

Finally, most online retailers in South Africa are confident in the industry’s future prospects and are optimistic about the country’s consistent growth of the market in the next five years.