Shopping behaviour of e - commerce customers on the example of generation Z

University of Zilina, Faculty of Operation and Economics of Transport and Communications, Univerzitna 1, 010 26 Zilina, Slovakia

^* Corresponding author: katarina.stofkova@fpedas.uniza.sk

Abstract

Research background: In today's competition markets and different types of customers, it is difficult to achieve a competitive advantage for merchants without knowing the shopping behaviour or intentions of customers. We can classify online store customers into many categories, but we have chosen a category - Generation Z.

Purpose of the article: Generation Z can be generally defined as the technically most advanced generation of the entire population. This generation represents demanding customers who seek experiences and shop the mostly online. Generation Z members have relatively high ambitions regarding their careers, lives and they know exactly what, where and how they shop. The aim of this article is to present key factors influencing purchasing behaviour of Generation Z in Slovakia.

Methods: Methods were used to meet the aim of the paper, to present the results of the author's primary research, processed by reducing the number of attributes influencing purchasing behavior using factor analysis. The target group of primary research respondents was born between 1997 and 2012.

Findings & Value added: Purchasing behavior of the Z generation is mainly influenced by design of the website, the importance of delivery methods together with the possibility of online payment, reviews of merchants and shopping at a well-known seller. An interesting finding is Generation Z's lack of interest in a new wave of trends influencing shopping preferences through popular people on the Internet, called influencers.