THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IMPACT TOWARDS CONSUMER PREFERENCES TO SHOP ONLINE: INVESTIGATION ON THE STATE OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR PRIOR TO AND DURING THE PANDEMIC, FACTORS INFLUENCING CONSUMER PREFERENCES AND CONSUMER CONFIDENCE

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to understand from the consumer point of view regarding their preferences to shop online. The research mainly focused on three variables which were to investigate the state of consumer behaviour prior to and during the pandemic, factors that may influence their preferences, and to identify the level of confidence that could influence the consumers preferences to shop online before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three hypotheses were developed to test the probabilities. Data were collected through an online survey which was distributed to consumers in Malaysia mainly targeting working adults living in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Reliability checks were determined, and multiple linear regression was used to test the hypothesis on both independent and dependent variables. The results showed that consumer behaviour, influencing and confidence factors does not play a significant role towards influencing consumers’ preferences to shop online prior to or during the COVID-19 pandemic because some consumers may have started on online shopping due to the awareness and usage of technology and Internet trends.