Student worksheet 2
Who shops on the Net?

Gathering Information about Internet Shoppers

Now that you have your business idea you would like to gather some information on recent trends in Internet shopping. This will help you determine whether the type of customers that you have identified as your "target market" in Question 4 of Worksheet 1 like to shop on the Internet.

You can find information on Internet shopping in Canada contained in the article "Net Shopping". The data included in this article come from the Household Internet Use Survey. Statistics Canada conducts this survey each year in order to help Canadians understand how and why the Internet is used. For updates, see Internet Use in Canada.

Using the article "Net Shopping" from Canadian Social Trends, answer the following questions:

Using data from the article you have read, try to assess whether the people that would use your products are Internet shoppers. Hint: Use the bar graphs on page 8 to help you write your answer. For example, if your product is aimed at families with teenage children, you could write that there are many people who would shop for your product since families with children aged 13-17 are the most common types of households shopping on the Internet.

1. Do people who use your products or services tend to be Internet shoppers? Use the graphs to explain your answer in a short paragraph of 2-4 sentences.
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2. According to the article, list three key advantages and three disadvantages shoppers face when shopping online.

   1. Key advantages:
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   2. Key disadvantages:
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3. Define the following terms.

   1. e-commerce household
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   2. Window shopper household
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   3. Internet shopper household
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4. What concerns do people have about Internet shopping? Explain why. What is being done, if anything?
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5. What are the three most popular products for the following groups and why?

   1. e-commerce households
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   2. Window shopper households
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