Online shopping and shopping value as influencers of consumers’ preferences

Online shopping has a great effect on retailing, and, with the rise of online shopping, consumers’ preferences and the way consumers shop changes. This research determines the effects of online shopping and shopping value on consumers’ preferences, and how these effects are affected by consumer characteristics. With the aid of an online questionnaire, which was distributed among an online panel, a stated choice experiment was conducted to quantify the consumers’ preferences. Next, the Multinomial Logit Model was applied to calculate the choice probabilities for different (online) shopping alternatives. These alternatives were described by different attributes. The research shows that online shopping is more utilitarian oriented. Furthermore, consumers’ preferences for shopping centers shift to a more hedonic oriented orientation. With this, consumers value extra facilities in the shopping centers, like hospitality, leisure, services, Wi-Fi and longer opening hours. Next, the research shows males shop online for both utilitarian and hedonic shopping goals, whereas, females shop online for mainly utilitarian shopping goals. The online shopping alternative poses as a solution for younger consumers. Furthermore, online shopping enhances the accessibility of hedonic shopping for rural consumers. The results of the research can be used by real estate managers, developers and investors, and (online) retailers.