The Internet is unlike any other medium, in that the reasons for using the Internet are varied. This is in part due to the nature of the communication activities available on the web. Users can use the Internet to do an array of things such as communicate with friends, find out news information, or go shopping. Using the Web for consumer purposes is increasingly becoming one of the primary reasons people are using the Internet. Not only is online shopping on the increase, as reported earlier, but consumers are also reporting spending more time online searching for information on products and services.
Consumers may receive three different outcomes from shopping: goods, information, and recreation (Downs, 1961). Consumers who seek the latter two outcomes are bowsers". Many consumers enjoyed the act of shopping itself, without intending to purchase. Browsing has been found to be related to product interest, product knowledge, product expenditure, product purchase satisfaction, level of word-of-mouth endorsement, opinion leadership, and demographic characteristics (Jarboe and McDaniel, 1987). In Internet shopping purchasers are far outnumbered by browsers (Seckler, 2000). It seems logical that people who are most likely to become future buyers are currently browsers who are familiar with using the Internet. Understanding the differences among purchasers, browsers, and Internet users who do not purchase or browse, can help retailers interested in using the Internet by providing them with information concerning their target market as well as other possible markets. Whilst it is more convenient to purchase from home, the coining of the term "Internet rage" (Lynch, 2002) is an indicator of some of the inconvenience and disappointments with suppliers that buying on the Web can bring. Factors that are important for online consumers will include speed of service and promptness in delivery, quality of the service encounter and the physical products delivered.
