ABSTRACT
Customers simply want to be recognized as individuals, wherever they are. Recognition on the Internet must include recognition in the shop and vice versa. The customer wants to have this commitment confirmed by recognition, appreciation and a sense of friendship. Retailers have to deal with different kinds of customers, with different buying motives and different buying behaviour. The existing retail trade is adapting to the new customer buying behaviour by focusing on the buying moment. The existing traditional retailers are considering the possibilities of the Internet. Some market leaders on the Internet are very dominant. The difference between the two being that traditional home shopping involves choosing and ordering the products by post and/or from mail order catalogues. Shopping locally still happens in villages and small towns but this is usually due to personal circumstances people with young families and immobile elderly people may find that this is more convenient for them.
