In the first year, E-Bay registered more than 300,000 users. Now they have 2.5 million. I was looking for a specific CD for my nephew. Howell says she was reluctant to make her first online purchase because of the potential risks. However, the gift arrived and Howell was more confident about her next purchase.
Consumers appear to be moving beyond the perceived risks of shopping online.
Tracy also explains that consumers usually make their first online purchase after hearing about a positive experience from a trusted source. Tracy's study on electronic commerce is beginning to reveal some initial findings about the demographics of online shoppers. They are used to not being able to examine the merchandise and are usually more willing to wait for it to be delivered. While there was a record number of consumers who utilized the Internet for Christmas shopping in 1998, retail outlets did not see a decrease in the number of cus-tomers. Many people use shopping as a social or recreational activity.