Internet is now main engagement and transaction channel for Chinese people

A new study from PwC found that 85% of Chinese consumers choose a digital channel as the first step for product research.

Chinese consumers have quickly embraced the convenience, accessibility and transparency of digital shopping and expect a seamless experience between the physical stores, suggests the report.

The study, Delivering on O2O, found that 86% of Chinese respondents said they had browsed in-store before shopping online – compared to 68% globally.

China’s largest internet players are already investing heavily in physical infrastructure in a bid to dominate offline retail as they have online.

The study further found that 78% of Chinese consumers would click on an internet advert if the content was relevant, and that 44% follow their favourite brand online, compared with the 34% world average – highlighting the country’s online engagement.

“Online-to-offline (O2O) is fast emerging as one of the most important trends in Chinese retail,” said the report.

“We believe that retailers and brands need to align their retail model to reflect this new non-linear, customer journey. Solving for just one element…is not enough. [Without] and increased an integrated platform retailers risk losing out entirely.”