CONCLUSIONES Y RECOMENDACIONES

The introduction of the Internet revolutionised communication with its broadcasting, information dissemination and interaction capabilities (Press, 2015). The two important inventions that aided the revolution of communication was the establishment of the ARPAnet in 1969, that later became known as the Internet, and the proposal by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 for what is known as the World Wide Web (Press, 2015).

The Internet is a well-known and extensive ‘superhighway’ defined by Forsythe and Shi (2003:868) as ‘a network of computer networks, which is capable of providing virtually instant access to a vast storehouse of information spanning the globe.’ The rise of the Internet has propelled the retail industry into an electronic age, changing the daily lives of consumers, including their communication and shopping behaviours (Darley et al., 2010). Not only has the rapidly changing online environment changed the lives of consumers; it has also created a competitive business landscape, presenting retailers with various opportunities and challenges.

Being a global medium, the Internet removes barriers to communication created by geography and time zones, enabling a frictionless business environment (Lee, Eze & Ndubisi, 2011). It is easier and less expensive for businesses to venture into the global market via the Internet and therefore, having an online presence has become a necessity in the new digital economy (Lee et al., 2011). According to Lee et al. (2011), although the advancement of the Internet presents opportunities and challenges to consumers and businesses, many are slow to adopt this advancement in communications technology.

The use of wireless technologies to access the Internet to conduct commercial activities continues to increase in most parts of the world and also in South Africa (Dlodlo & Mafini, 2013). The Global Information Technology Report (2015:14) by the World Economic Forum ranked South Africa as the third most developed African country in terms of information communication and mobile technologies, following Mauritius and the Seychelles. Despite evidence suggesting that Internet technologies enhance the long-term growth rates of economies and have twice the effect on developing countries as on developed countries, many nations still battle to accept new technologies (Dlodlo & Mafini, 2013).

However, research by Modimogale and Jan (2011) found that Internet awareness and usage in South Africa has undergone amplification. This development has driven reliance on Internet technologies amongst South Africans (Dlodlo & Mafini, 2013). The Interactive Advertising Bureau of South Africa (IABSA) conducted research to compare the South African online community of April 2015 with the online community of April 2016 (South Africa Online, 2016). For both years, the gender distribution of South Africans using the Internet was recorded as equal and for both years consumers between the ages of 25 and 29 years were found to be the most active respondents online (South Africa Online, 2016:1). The IABSA conducted further research into the South African online community and found that in June 2016 there were 4 million unique Internet browsers daily (i.e. the number of devices requesting Internet content, not individual people) and 1 billion page views on average (South Africa Online, 2016:1).

The South Africa Digital Measurement Report (2016:1), by IABSA and Effective Measure, investigated the online behaviour of South Africans and found that the majority of Internet access came from Gauteng residents (38%) and that 61% of South Africans accessed the Internet through their smartphones. South Africa can be described as an active online nation with 79% of respondents having accessed the Internet the day before taking the survey and a further 10% having accessed the Internet at least within the past ten days of taking the survey (South Africa Digital Measurement Report, 2016:1).

Consumers were found to use the Internet for various reasons (e.g. e-mail, banking) and over the past decades, the Internet has developed into a vast global marketplace

for the exchange of goods and services (Javadi et al., 2012). The Internet thus allows businesses to remain competitive by providing consumers with more convenient, faster and cheaper ways to conduct their purchases, for example to purchase and pay for products and services using online platforms (Lee et al., 2011).

The popularisation of the Internet has made online shopping a common trend and further encouragement from social networks has managed to change consumption habits to shift attention to the development of e-commerce (Hsieh & Tsao, 2014). The evolution of online shopping strongly depends on the acceptance and understanding of the Internet and information technologies by consumers (Hernandez, Jimenez & Martin, 2011). However, despite the fact that many South African consumers are active on the Internet, only a small portion use the Internet for retail (E-commerce lags in South Africa, 2015).

It is crucial for retailers to take note of the changing consumer behaviour and use the advancement of Internet technologies to their advantage. The e-commerce revolution brings about a new knowledge-based economy, as the Internet provides consumers with accurate and timely information (Gounaris, Dimitriadis & Stathakopoulos, 2010). It is well recognised that the Internet presents a fundamentally different shopping environment than traditional shopping channels. As such, traditional marketing paradigms, theories and activities need to be re-evaluated within this new context and online retailers must deliver superior shopping experiences to their consumers to be successful in a highly competitive environment. The online shopping revolution globally and in South Africa will be the focus in the following section with the explanation of the concept of online shopping.