Two surveys suggest U.K. consumers are less satisfied with online retailers than they were in the fall and remained concerned about web security.
Satisfaction with online retail sites stood at 78.3% in April compared with a record high of 79.6% in November 2008, according to the quarterly e-CSI survey by eDigitalResearch and e-retailing consulting firm IMRG. There was positive news for apparel retailers as just under half of respondents say they are spending the same or more on fashion despite the economic downturn, and 76% plan to spend the same or more online in the coming year.
The survey also suggests a preference for the e-commerce sites of retail chains over web-only merchants. Almost three-quarters of consumers surveyed say they prefer to return goods to stores, and 52% prefer to shop online with multichannel retailers.
There was a big disconnect when it came to social networks, as 58% of respondents say they participate in those networks, but only 4% were members of social network groups of fashion brands and 2% could identify a fashion brand active in social networking. “There still remains a huge opportunity for market-leaders to engage with social networking, as there is hardly any consumer recognition of brands on these sites,” says James Roper of IMRG. “As one of the most powerful media available at the moment, this is an opportunity waiting to be grasped.” Data is based on a survey of 2,000 online shoppers.
A second survey of 2,000 British consumers finds 50% of those who regularly shop online say they would cancel a purchase if their preferred payment method were not offered. 36% say they will shop more online than in stores in 2009 compared with last year, and 45% agreed they would be spending more time online looking for bargains.
However, consumers remain concerned about security, according to the poll of 2,000 consumers sponsored by payment system ClickandBuy. Of the 32% of those surveyed who say they do not often shop online, 54% say this is because they are worried about entering credit card data on a web site. And 84% believe there are more people trying to commit fraud online as use of the Internet increases.
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