Alibaba may be valued at more than eBay and Amazon combined, but China's ecommerce powerhouse has low brand recognition among American online shoppers of all generations.
Bizrates Insights, a division of Connexity (formerly Shopzilla), surveyed more than 3,500 online buyers and found that 63 percent are still not familiar with Alibaba, which is said to soon be entering the U.S. market.
Of the online shoppers who are familiar with Alibaba (or have even interacted with the site), 35 percent indicate they would not even browse, much less purchase from a Chinese ecommerce company (that number rises for people who have never heard of the company). The main concerns that survey respondents have with Alibaba are: long delivery windows, distrust/fear over security of personal and payment information and that they prefer to "Buy American."
"Alibaba could pave the way for more Chinese ecommerce companies to gain a customer base in the U.S.," says Hayley Silver, Vice President, Bizrate Insights, a division of Connexity, Inc. "But it will be an immediate challenge for the company to overcome its lack of name recognition among U.S. shoppers and to reassure them that their transactions and information will be safe and secure."