Tapping Consumer 4.0

Adoption of technology is changing Indonesian consumers in ways that leave companies unprepared.

- Ardian Wibisono

There is no arguing that the rapid digital adoption by Indonesian middle-class consumers is creating huge business potentials, and at the same time disrupting old business models. Two recent researches conducted by consulting company McKinsey & Company and Facebook have shed light on the promising outlook of Indonesian consumers as technology adoption and digital ecosystem further develops in the country. McKinsey estimates the size of Indonesia’s online commerce market is more than $8 billion involving 30 million online shoppers. And this number is expected to rise to $65 billion by 2022, in contrast to conventional retail growth that has been growing flat since last year.

Facebook looked deeper and beyond mere figures. Using ethnography-focused research, Facebook sees that technology adoption also shapes culture and behavior of Indonesian consumers. However, the Facebook research also revealed an interesting finding: while 77% of business players acknowledged the potentials, only 15% are ready to adapt with changing trends.

“With the research we try to fix the misperception on the potentials of digital economy. We see that businesses are underestimating how the middle class uses technology, which is more than just to spend their free time,” says Sri Widowati, country director of Facebook Indonesia.