Online Retail Brands Report - South Africa - 2020

Overview

The Acentric Online Retail Brands Report 2020, offers detailed insights into the online-retail brand landscape in South Africa, while providing invaluable tactical information for startups and existing store owners.

It is of special relevance to decision makers responsible for marketing and brand management, providing a broad range of measures specifically related to brand performance and positioning that provide essential input into marketing strategy. In order to ensure data integrity, the study avoided supply-side interviews (i.e. retailers) and instead focused on consumer interviews. Only consumers who had made at least one online purchase in the 12 months prior were allowed to participate. Additional restrictions included age (15 years and older) and residence (South Africa).

In total, 75 brands and 30 product categories were covered. In terms of brands included, particular emphasis was placed on ensuring the top brands in the following categories were included: appliances, books, cellular, computers, electronic goods / appliances not listed elsewhere, fashion (clothes / shoes / accessories / cosmetics), watches, jewelry, homeware. In addition generalist stores such as Amazon and Takealot were included.

The survey was conducted using an ISO 20252 certified panel managed by CINT AB Sweden and Acentric Marketing Research. The survey was completed on the 8th of March 2020 – meaning it is free of the temporary distortions of lockdown on brand positioning and purchase measures. In total 264 respondents completed the survey and provides measures for the previous 12 month period. As is best practice, post-weighting was applied to improve representation in terms of demographics.

Who would benefit from this report?

Investors, potential online store owners, existing online store owners, brand managers, marketing managers and advertising agencies.

Why buy this report?

• Value for money – obtain insights at a fraction of the cost of commissioning your own study.
• Includes a conjoint simulator to aid in tactical trade-offs such as delivery charges, delivery timelines, return charges, return policy, discount coupons / mystery gift, compensation types for returns and time allowed (more detail below).
• Obtain measures of categories ‘ever’ bought online, online category penetration over 12 months, online purchase frequency and online average spend per category.
• Gauge each online retail brand’s performance over the preceding 12 months. Included are estimates of brand revenue, measures of brand penetration, brand purchase occasion frequency and average spend per brand. Obtain a ranking of brands in terms of customer-based brand equity (ABM Index).
• Understand consumer perceptions of each brand’s positioning.
• Brand awareness and perceived positioning data (brand signatures for each brand & brand performance per attribute) to enable you to make the right brand positioning and promotion decisions – whether you are launching a new store or you already have one.
• Discover the competitor weaknesses consumers perceive.
• You’ve got limited budget. Discover the hot buttons (attributes) to press to promote your brand.
• Discover which attributes competitors are poorly differentiated on – identify opportunities to differentiate your brand.
• Obtain indicators of attribute correlation with store preference.
• Substitutability quantified. Identify who consumers see as the closest substitutes for each brand.
• Quantify which problems are most commonly encountered by customers, and how this differs using banner tables across demographics (significant differences highlighted).
• Quantify the communication channels preferred by consumers, and how this differs using banner tables across demographics (significant differences highlighted).
• Quantify the payment mechanisms consumers are able to use, and how this differs using banner tables across demographics (significant differences highlighted).

Categories included:

Arts & crafts

Audio entertainment DEVICES (e.g. iPod, Hi-Fi)

Books (paper)

Books (electronic – i.e. eBooks)

Camping/hiking products

Cell phones/smartphones

Clothing/shoes/fashion accessories (excl. watches)

Computer – PC/laptop

Computer peripheral

Cosmetics

DIY/home improvement

Electronic goods not listed elsewhere

Entertainment physical (e.g. DVDs, CDs)

Entertainment digital (e.g. digital video/music downloads and streaming services)

E-reader (e.g. Kindle)

Flowers/flower accessories

Furniture – indoors and garden furniture

Groceries

Homeware (excl. kitchen)

Hotels/vacation packages

Jewelry (excl. watches)

Kitchenware

Security (e.g. alarms, safes, pepper spray)

Software for a laptop/PC

Sporting goods

Tablet (e.g. iPad)

Toys for children/babies

TV or projector

Vape / e-cigarette

Watches

 

Online retail brands included:

Ackermans*

ActiveCellular*

Amazon*

Archive

Audiomart*

Bargain Books*

Best Beauty Buys

Bid or Buy*

Book People

BT Games*

Builders*

CA Cellular*

Cellucity*

Chrono24

ComX

CUM

dearrae

Dion*

Direct Deals

Dyson

Edgars*

Elite Occassions

Evetech

Exact*

Excellular.co.za

Exclusive*

Fashion World*

First Shop

Foschini*

Foxy Beauty

Game*

HiFi Corp*

Hirsch*

House and Home*

House of Cosmetics*

Incredible*

Laptop Direct*

Loot*

Makro*

Mens Shoe Centre

Metro Cosmetics

MRP*

Netjewel

Next

NWJ*

PayCheap

Pink Cosmetics

PnP*

Poetry

Pwnedgames

Raru

Readers Warehouse

Signature Cosmetics*

Silvery

Smartphone Shop*

Solo Shoes

SoundSelect

Step Ahead

Superbalist*

Tafelberg

Takealot*

The Book Dealers

The Brand Store

The Fix*

The Watch Channel

The Watch Co.

Top Watch

Tread + Miller

W24

Watch Republic

Watches Direct

Watchfinder

Woolworths*

Yuppiechef*

Zando*

 
*Brands with stars are included in all report sections. Brands without stars are excluded from the brand signature and brand performance charts due to small base sizes. However they are included in the brand awareness, brand penetration charts as these would not be affected. They are also included in frequency and spend charts, however caution should be exercised in interpreting their results.

For more detail, see the table of contents.

Conjoint analysis simulator provides tactical input to store setup

Learn what trade-offs to make using a unique excel-based store simulator. The simulator is based on consumer reactions to alternative stores. Survey participants were shown various store alternatives, allowing the estimation of statistical model for each consumer, providing insight into trade-offs consumers are prepared to make.

A mathematical model was then setup as a simulator which allows you to test alternative scenarios impact on store appeal by varying the following attributes.

• Time to deliver
• Delivery charge
• Return shipping charge
• Policy wording
• Discount /promotion
• Compensation
• Time allowed (days)

Answer specific questions such as:

• What change in timeline could compensate for a change of R50 in delivery charges? Just input the change in delivery charges in the simulator and record the change in appeal. Compare this to the change in appeal when changing timeline. At what point is their parity?
• Observe the impact of changes in delivery timeline (1 to 14 days) on store appeal.
• Observe the impact of delivery charges (free to R320) on store appeal.
• Observe the impact of return shipping charges versus free return on store appeal.
• Observe the impact of policy wording specifying the conditions for return (3 options) on store appeal.
• Observe the impact of discount coupons of differing percentages (0%, 10% and 20%) versus the impact of a free mystery gift. Compare this to other changes you could make such as changing delivery charges or timelines.
• Understand compensation alternatives impact on appeal – exchange, refund or store credit.
• Understand the impact of return grace periods (from 7 to 60 days). How does this compare to other changes you could make, such as changing return policy or delivery timeline?