Technological Christmas

Millions of people in Britain will be shopping on the net over the next month, with a quarter (26%) saying they would definitely or probably shop online this Christmas. The vast majority of those who currently shop on-line (86%) find it very or fairly easy to do so. Books, CDs and toys/games head the list for on-line shoppers.

Millions of people in Britain will be shopping on the net over the next month, with a quarter (26%) saying they would definitely or probably shop online this Christmas. The vast majority of those who currently shop on-line (86%) find it very or fairly easy to do so. Books, CDs and toys/games head the list for on-line shoppers.

This new research by MORI for Dell Computers also shows that technology-based Christmas presents are a key-buy this year, with two-thirds of all shoppers in Britain (68%) expecting to buy some form of electronic gift. Games consoles are likely to be most popular technology-related Christmas gift, closely followed by computers.

Technical details

MORI interviewed 1002 adults in Great Britain by telephone. The fieldwork was undertaken between 8 and 11 November 2002.

Topline Results

  • MORI Telephone Surveys interviewed a nationally representative sample of adults aged 16+ in Great Britain. The sample was drawn by RDD (Random Digit Dialling) and sourced to cover ex-directory numbers.
  • 1,002 interviews were carried out in total amongst this group of respondents between 8-11 November 2002
  • Where figures do not sum to 100 per cent, this may be due to computer rounding, multiple codes or the exclusion of 'Don't know'
  • * represents a figure of greater than zero, but less than 0.5%

Q1 This Christmas, will any of the presents you are going to buy be bought online using the Internet? Is that definitely or probably?

Base: All (1,002)

  %
Yes — definitely 9
Yes — probably 17
No 72
No — don't celebrate Christmas/buy Christmas presents 2

Q2 Which of the following might you buy online this Christmas?

Base: All who will definitely or probably buy presents online this year (255)

  %
Toys/games 44
Clothing and footwear 34
Jewellery 15
Books 57
CDs/Music 66
DVDs 50
Household goods/gifts 33
PC or printers 12
PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants)/Palm Pilots 4
Cameras (including digital) 18
Other 4
None of these 5
Don't know 1

Q3 Why aren't you planning on shopping online?

Base: All who will not buy Christmas presents online this year (747)

  %
Security concerns 11
I have no internet access 48
I have Internet access but am not sure how to use it 6
I prefer shopping on the high street 27
Other 7
Don't know 3

Q4 Did you use the Internet to buy Christmas presents last year?

Base: All who celebrate Christmas/buy Christmas presents (985)

  %
Yes 15
No 85

Q5 If you were to buy an electronic or technology-based present for somebody this Christmas, what is it most likely to be?

Base: All who celebrate Christmas/buy Christmas presents (985)

  %
Games console 12
PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) 1
Computer/laptop 9
Printer, scanner, other peripherals 1
TV 3
Stereo 7
Video 1
DVD player 7
Digital camera 5
Mobile phone 4
Other 8
None of these 23
Don't know 18

Q6 Who, if anybody, will you be buying an electronic or technology-based present for this Christmas?

Base: All who celebrate Christmas/buy Christmas presents (985)

  %
Parents(s) 6
Brother(s) 7
Sister(s) 4
Partner/husband/wife 13
Child(ren) 31
Grandmother(s) *
Grandfather(s) *
Other relative(s) 11
Friends(s) 3
Nobody 29
Don't know 3

Q7 How often do you shop online?

Base: All (1,002)

  %
Daily 1
About once a week 3
About once a month 9
About once every three months 12
At least once a year 9
Never 66

Q8a On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is very easy, 2 is fairly easy, 3 is neither easy nor difficult, 4 is fairly difficult and 5 is very difficult, how easy or difficult do you find shopping online.

Base: All (1,002)

  %
Very easy 17
Fairly easy 17
Neither easy nor difficult 3
Fairly difficult 2
Very difficult 1
Never use it 60

Q8b On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is very easy, 2 is fairly easy, 3 is neither easy nor difficult, 4 is fairly difficult and 5 is very difficult, how easy or difficult do you find shopping online.

Base: All who use online shopping (396)

  %
Very easy 44
Fairly easy 42
Neither easy nor difficult 7
Fairly difficult 5
Very difficult 2

Q9 Which of the following, if any, would most encourage you to buy online?

Base: All (1,002)

  %
Money off 33
Free delivery 27
Free gift 8
Vouchers 9
Having Internet access 14
None of these 40

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