Profiling potential adopters and non‐adopters of an interactive electronic shopping medium

A mail survey was conducted to identify personal characteristics, shopping patterns, and attitudes of potential innovators and non‐adopters of an interactive electronic shopping innovation. Differences among all potential adopter groups were also examined. A national sample of 2,500 US cable television subscribers were surveyed. Results suggested that strongest predictors of potential innovator and non‐adopter group memberships were perceived characteristics of the interactive shopping innovation including relative advantage over other shopping formats and compatibility with lifestyles. Also important were consumers’ prior shopping experiences with other nonstore retailers. Among potential adopters (i.e., innovators, early adopters, and followers), similar characteristics were exhibited, differing only by intensity. Managerial implications are discussed.