Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Many Indonesians will not hesitate to spend their yearly bonus, locally known as tunjangan hari raya or THR, this Ramadan, according to a joint survey by advertiser The Trade Desk and market research firm YouGov.

Employers usually give their employees a yearly bonus about a week before the Eid, which will likely fall on April 22. And it all comes down to two options: whether to save the bonus or spend it on themselves and their loved ones. The Trade Desk and Yougov survey finds that 53 percent of the respondents are planning to spend their bonus this Ramadan rather than putting it into savings.

"Ramadan is all about shopping. About 88 percent of the respondents intend to purchase something for themselves or others. This is why hampers become one of the top purchases during Ramadan," Kautsar Ikrami, the senior manager at The Trade Desk, told a conference in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Indonesians will be doing their Ramadan shopping online, the survey shows. Promos and discounts become the top reason why they shop online, with 63 percent of the respondents in agreement.

More than half (69 percent) of the surveyed female millennials – a demographic who tend to be more price-conscious than the general population – prefer online shopping for the same reason. Forty-seven of the male millennials on the survey also go online for Ramadan shopping because it is practical and fast. Hampers become the third-top online shopping category for this demographic.

"Indonesians like to do their online shopping research early, even a month before Ramadan starts. It will likely peak a week or two before Eid. Do you know why? Because that is when the THR comes," Kautsar said.

According to The Trade Desk, online shopping research goes up a month before the fasting month. The average visits across the top five e-commerce sites in Indonesia see an uptick when Indonesians receive their THR, namely a week or two before Eid.

About 2,000 adults across the archipelago took part in the online survey in Nov. 2022. YouGov reported that all data were weighted by age, gender, and socio-economic class to reflect the latest Indonesian population estimates.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/lifestyle/many-indonesians-to-spend-their-eid-bonus-this-year-surve