Factors driving women consumers to shop shoes online

: an exploratory study

Abstract

This paper investigates the factors that drive women consumers to shop shoes online. Getting to know the factors that influence female consumers to engage in online shopping activities, particularly when the products in question are experience goods with a high need for touch characteristic, such as shoes, is extremely important for marketers that aim to target this specific audience. A qualitative research method was selected, using a semi-structured, in-depth interview technique. For data collection, twelve in-depth interviews were conducted to corroborate the constructs defined in the proposed model, namely: convenience, recreation, need for touch and social e-shopping. Ten of these interviews were focused on the demand side to understand the female consumers’ perspective and the other were made to two managers of a women’s shoes company to represent the suppliers’ viewpoint. The main results indicate that the women consumers in this study highly appreciate the convenience aspect that shopping shoes online provides them as well as the recreational trait that online shopping offers. The need for touch is considered a very important factor in the shoe market context mainly due to the size issue inherent to this product category. Additionally, social e-shopping was found not be as important for women as it was supposed to be given the literature reviewed - they see SNS’s more as a communication platform for brands, than they see it as a factor that influences their predisposition to shop shoes online. On the suppliers’ side, the interviews revealed the managers’ belief in bloggers and social media influence and how this is a key part of their overall marketing strategy. Therefore, the study intends to provide interesting insights for marketers by giving the perspective of a digital-born company.

Date of Award	27 Mar 2017
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Susana Silva (Supervisor)