| dc.description.abstract | Online shopping or online retailing is a form of electronic commerce which allows
consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web
browser. Alternative names are: e-shop, e-store, Internet shop, web-shop, web-store,
online store, and virtual store. An online shop evokes the physical analogy of buying
products or services at a bricks-and-mortar retailer or shopping center; the process is
called business-to-consumer (B2C) online shopping. In the case where a business buys
from another business, the process is called business-to-business (B2B) online
shopping. By December 31 2012, the number of Internet users in Kenya had reached
16.2 million. Internet penetration went up to reach 41.1%. All this is in line with the
worldwide pace of Internet adoption. Online shopping has also been growing at a very
fast pace in the developed world, but the trend has not quite picked up in the developing
nations, including Kenya. It is still a relatively new trend. There is not much research
that has been conducted in this field, and as such literature on online shopping adoption
in the Kenyan context is very limited. It is on the basis of this gap that the researcher set
out to find out the reasons that influence adoption of online shopping in the Kenyan
context. The study used descriptive survey research design as it is helpful in indicating
trends in attitudes and behaviors and enable generalization of the findings of the
research study done. This design was considered appropriate for this study because it
saves time, expenses and the amount of quality information yielded is valid, while
interviewer bias is reduced because participants complete identically worded selfreported
measures. The population selected for the research came from Westlands
district, Nairobi County and a minimum sample of 384 respondents was selected to take
part. The data was collected using by use of questionnaires. An intercept personal
interview approach was adopted to collect the data for the research. The data was
analyzed by use of Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) together with
Microsoft Excel. The quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics where
measures like frequency and percentages and the relevant implication of these values
were noted. The data presentation was done using frequency distribution tables and
charts. These are clear, easy to compute, understand and interpret the findings. The
findings of the study revealed that online shopping was a new trend in the Kenyan
market and was taking root. Some of the reasons cited for adoption of online shopping
include; time saving, easy comparison of alternative products, fairer prices of online
goods, expert/user review of products and access to a market without borders. With
online shopping one can purchase an item from any part of the world. Some challenges
and concerns that need to be addressed as far as online shopping adoption goes were
perceived risks negatively influences consumers’ intentions and actual use of e-shopping.
Online stores ought to introduce security mechanisms to reduce associated
risks. Commonly purchased items on the internet include; Videos/DVDs, Music/CDs,
Electronic products (e.g. phones, cameras), Software, Travel (e.g. airline tickets, hotel
bookings), and Financial services or Banking. The study provides relevant business
advantage in terms of providing insights on how online shopping is being embraced the
challenges, and how to improve it. The study also lays a foundation for future research
in the area of online shopping adoption in Kenya. | en_US |
