E- SHOPPING: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES PERCEIVED BY CONSUMERS

The present study was conducted in Hisar district of Haryana state. Respondents having access to computer and doing online shopping were selected purposively. A sample comprised of 206 respondents representing group of students, professionals and housewives from both rural and urban area. Results revealed that best offers and provision of return besides delivery time and mode of payment were the main factors considered for making online purchases. Shoes, books and clothes were the items purchased online by urban respondents, while mobile phones, clothes and shoes were preferred by respondents from rural background. Railway booking, mobile recharge and hotel booking were the main services accessed by respondents through internet. Lack of touch and feel, link not working, server breakdown were the main constraints/ hindrance reported by respondents. Checking authenticity of websites (rank I), paying cash on delivery (rank II) and reading complete terms and conditions (rank III) were important measures adopted by respondents to prevent online frauds.