Out of six countries studied, the UAE boasts the greatest number of consumers who use digital features to enhance their shopping journeys, according to PYMNTS’ and Visa Cybersource’s report entitled 2023 Global Digital Shopping Index: UAE edition.
The research reveals that the absolute majority (94 per cent) of the UAE’s 3.1 million adult shoppers used at least one digital shopping feature during their most recent purchase.
Vice president and UAE country manager at Visa, Salima Gutieva, said: “We are thrilled to see the UAE emerging as a leading country where consumers embrace and utilise digital shopping features with utmost enthusiasm. With the highest global digital shopping index score, it is evident that local merchants have successfully crafted seamless shopping and payment experiences for their customers.
“The fact that 94 per cent of adult UAE shoppers have incorporated at least one digital feature during their recent shopping journey highlights the strong digital adoption in the market. As we witness this growing trend, Visa remains committed to partnering with UAE merchants to optimise their offerings and continue meeting the evolving needs of tech-savvy consumers.”
UAE consumers’ fondness for digital shopping is not news for local merchants as their supply of digital shopping features far exceeds the demand. It is thanks to this array of features that consumers in the UAE have the smoothest shopping journeys of countries surveyed, PYMNTS reports.
The report surveyed 13,349 consumers and 3,124 merchants across Brazil, India, Mexico, the UAE, the UK and the US. The global study examines the factors influencing how and where consumers shop, how they pay for purchases and the features that establish merchant preference.
Why UAE consumers like to shop online
UAE consumers shop primarily shop online because they believe products online are cheaper — especially factoring in free shipping — and because they value hassle-free shopping experiences.
Half of the e-commerce shoppers in the UAE cited free shipping as a reason to shop online, while 43 per cent cited an easy checkout process.
Gender gap in mobile phones usage
While women in the UAE are more likely to have completed a retail transaction entirely on their smartphones, men were more likely than women to have used their smartphones to enhance their in-store shopping experience, at 55 per cent and 45 per cent, respectively.
Most valued features
The research uncovered an overall increase in consumers’ awareness of which shopping features local merchants offer. Now UAE shoppers seem to be more attracted to cost-saving features than they were in the past. For instance, a whopping 51 per cent more local consumers were aware of coupons, promo codes or rewards in 2022 than in 2021. In addition, UAE shoppers are prone to overestimating the number of features merchants offer.
