More Filipinos are using eCommerce for the first time to make purchases from large online marketplaces as well as from home-based online businesses during the pandemic which leads to increased eCommerce activity and usage in home delivery services.
These highlights were disclosed by Dan Wolbert, Visa country manager for the Philippines and Guam, based on the Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes Study, an annual survey of consumers conducted from August to September 2020 to a total of 1,000 Filipinos to assess payment behaviors across Southeast Asia including the Philippines.
According to the study, many Filipino shoppers purchased online for the first time during the pandemic, where one in two Filipinos shopped online through apps and websites while 43% shopped online via social media channels for the first time. For those who are already actively shopping, 93% of consumers increase their online shopping activities via websites and apps, while seven in 10 Filipinos are shopping more on social media channels.
During the pandemic, 53% of Filipino consumers are doing their shopping at large online marketplaces; 61% are buying at online home-based businesses, while 34% believe that shopping at online marketplaces will become a new habit for the pandemic.
Whether shopping on online marketplaces, or social media channels, there is a logistics or delivery needs on how Filipino consumers are receiving their purchases. Ecommerce is the reason for the surge in home delivery usage. About 93% of Filipino buyers use home delivery services in getting their goods while 67% increase their usage of home delivery services during the pandemic.
New shopping preferences came out during the pandemic which may become future shopping habits. As digital payment adoption grows, there is a reduction in the usage of cash. Respondents comprising 53% say they carry less cash in their wallet. During the pre-pandemic period in the Philippines, more than seven out of 10 respondents say their payments were made in cash. Currently, cash usage is approximately done in five out of 10 payments.
The reasons for the drop in cash usage include the following: For 73% of respondents, they use more contactless payments including mobile wallets; 54% say cash is unsafe from potential spread of infection; 50% believe there is now a wider acceptance of cashless payment, while 43% say carrying cash is unsafe.
While there are still Filipinos who carry cash in buying their needs, there are also many Filipinos who currently support a cashless society. This is because 75% of Filipino consumers believe that digital payments can help curb spread of infection. Seventy two percent say it is convenience-related while 63% like the ability to track their financial record.
When asked about what categories can be completely cashless, Filipino respondents say bills payment (81%), grocery shopping (71%), and overseas travel (68%).
The use of contactless payment among current users increases by 66% during the pandemic while 88% of Filipino respondents are interested to try out contactless payment method. They will benefit from the use of contactless payments as 88% of Filipino respondents say there’s no need to carry cash, 75% say it is safe from infection, while 68% have innovative payment method.
Meanwhile, Visa introduced two new campaigns in the course of the pandemic. These are the ‘Where You Shop Matters’ which grows SME digital enablement and supports local businesses, and the ‘Life is Better Cashless’ which evolves lifestyle of consumers through the use of digital payments.
