Indonesia ranks second highest across SEA for early tech adopters

Early tech adopters are a lucrative group of consumers globally for tech companies and retailers to target. They tend to be younger and have higher disposable income than the average consumer. According a whitepaper titled “First in Line: Early technology adopters around the globe” by YouGov, almost a fifth (18%) of consumers across 25 markets are early adopters of technology. Of which, Asia accounts for highest number of early adopters (27%), followed by North America (17%) and Europe (14%). 

The whitepaper also revealed that 32% of Indonesian population are early adopters of tech. This is the second highest number of early adopters across six nations in ASEAN. Vietnam leads with the highest number, where two in five (42%) are early adopters. It is then followed by Indonesia, Philippines (30%), Thailand (28%), Singapore (23%) and Malaysia (21%).

According to YouGov's definitions, early tech adopters refer to those who are either “actively on the lookout to buy new tech devices and services” or “always keen to use new tech products as soon as they enter the market”. They are followed by "second wave customers" who prefer to buy tech products after they’ve been out for a while, "discerning customers" who only buy tech products when they really like them and "latecomers" who only replace tech products when they are faulty or broken. 

Additionally, YouGov found that early adopters in Indonesia tend to fit a certain profile. They are likely to be young, with 74% of those aged 25 to 34 are early adopters. Early adopters also tend to be male. While slightly over half (54%) of the Indonesian population are men, two-thirds (65%) of early adopters are male. They also tend to married and of a high socio-economic status, YouGov added.

The profile of an Indonesian early adopter is not only identifiable by demographics, it is also apparent in their purchasing habits of tech devices. While price (73%) is the key factor for the general population when buying a smartphone, processor power (76%) comes in first for early adopters. On the flipside, YouGov revealed that Malaysia has the highest number of "latecomers" (40%). This is followed by Philippines (36%), Singapore (31%), Indonesia (30%), Thailand (23%) and Vietnam (22%). YouGov's whitepaper looks at technology adoption across 25 markets worldwide, based on more than 370,000 interviews with consumers about their tech habits and attitudes. 

Russell Feldman, director of digital, media and technology research at YouGov, said: “There is a specific type of tech consumer – one that crosses international borders and a range of product categories. We wanted to understand who these technology early adopters are that actively seek out new devices, so brands can better understand how to target them in an increasingly competitive tech market.”

Digital tools seem to be the talk of town among Indonesian consumers this year. Earlier in February, eCommerce platform Shopee was found to be the most talked about brand in the country, according to YouGov’s annual BrandIndex Buzz Rankings. Digital brands such as WhatsApp, YouTube, eCommerce site Tokopedia, digital wallet GO-PAY, Samsung, and digital payment platform OVO also made it into the top ten rankings. WhatsApp lands itself in second place with a Buzz score of 57.5, YouTube in fourth place with 55.4, Tokopedia and GO-PAY tying in sixth place with the same 54.1 Buzz score, and OVO in ninth place with 51.6.

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(Photo courtesy: 123RF)

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