Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eDigitalResearcheRetail Benchmark Study
Issue 33
March 2010 – April 2010
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eMysteryShopper Background
eDigitalResearch has been undertaking „end to end‟ eMysteryShopper surveys on the top UK Internet retail sites since Christmas 2000
With our in-depth research we can benchmark and plot the development of retail websites over the last ten years
As a result we have an unprecedented level of knowledge, expertise and research data covering the development of some of the top UK internet retail sites
eMysteryShopper provides in-depth and structured study of website usability, functionality, supporting logistics and customer service through our unique panel of profiled UK Internet users. Working under strict Non Disclosure Agreements these profiled individuals are paid to complete „end to end‟ surveys on selected websites
We currently work with over 10,000 profiled UK eMysteryShoppers(surveyors) carrying out end to end usability studies on over 60 sites at any one time.
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eMysteryShopper „v‟ Lab usability
We believe that the „usability‟ of any live and currently functioning web site should be based on the opinions of as many profiled users as possible. Respondents should also be using their own equipment and internet connections mirroring as closely as possible the clients‟ own mix of user. This is opposed to deploying one-to-one interviews in „laboratory‟ conditions
This „end to end‟ usability technique provided by eMysteryShopper has the following advantages:-
Provides both qualitative and quantitative data that allows both pre and post site change analysis
Allows for quantitative benchmarking versus main competitors
Allows benchmarking versus „best in breed‟ in other areas of the internet
Allows users to complete feedback using their own familiar equipment
Users complete surveys when they want ; across all times of the day and week with little interference or influence from facilitators or fellow focus group members
Enables the surveyor to give feedback on the actual product delivery and associated customer service support
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
This latest eRetail Benchmark study points to the following sites as leading the industry either across all or within specific customer touchpoints.
JD Sports
Placed 1st across all customer touchpoints. A consistently strong performance for both front end (online) and back end (delivery/customer contact) systems. Particularly strong on Product detail pages, checkout process and customer contact. It is this combined performance of an effective and engaging website combined with strong offline back end system to support customer contact
M&S
Another good all round performance across all sections, with very high scores on site search (keyword).
John Lewis
Consistently in the top quartile across all sections moving to the top 10 when customer contact was made.
Amazon
Whilst scoring lower on some areas, Amazon achieved high ratings on navigation, despite the extensive online range, boosted by the ability to pre filter a keyword search by department and easy to use filtering options. Once registered Amazon provided our surveyors with a smooth and quick checkout process and email support.
Asos
Would have been placed in the top 5 were it not for the inability for customers to telephone. Although asos has an industry leading response time (1 hour) on email queries, this mono-channel customer contact proposition does not appeal to all customers, who marked asos down for not being able to telephone an advisor.
Key Findings
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
The latest eRetail Benchmark results highlight key areas of strength and weakness throughout the customer journey.
Across the sector, retail websites achieve their highest ratings for search and navigation, driven by effective site search (keyword) tools, clear navigation (Left hand and top tabs) and subsequent filtering/refining of results.
Top performers were M&S and HMV for site search and New Look and Figleaves for navigation. However, although overall this area performed well, there was still some variability across the websites surveyed, particularly for site (keyword) search. Key causes of frustration for our surveyors were irrelevant results returned from site search and the inability to filter/refine results returned or the filter options being different to what was needed.
The key underperforming area was email customer contact which was primarily driven by the speed of response, with an average of 29% of emails responded to within 12 hours.
There was also a very high degree of variability in the customer experience with some outstanding service but also examples of poor service. Our research indicates customer expectations are for a response to an email query (which actually addresses the query) within 12-24 hours.Moreover, the industry is moving fast with asos now promising a response within 1 business hour to all email queries – this will only serve to increase customer expectations and force the industry to address their strategies for this customer touchpoint.
Another area of mixed performance was for the product detail pages, which are the primary source of a customers purchasing decision. Industry leading sites were Figleaves, JD Sports and asos, who provide all the customer information required to make a purchase decision.
These sites delivered well on the basics of clear pricing and product benefits, but also provided alternative product images and relevant product recommendations. Asos now have a „view catwalk‟ video on the majority of their products giving the customer an alternative way of viewing the product on a real model.
Summary
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
„Norms‟ - allowing quantifiable benchmarking
Definitions:
Excellent - Exceeds expectations - at least as good as the best sites - Special features that have surprised and delighted. 90%+ compares to top ecommerce sites.
Average – Just on par with other internet sites - Elements are okay - A reasonable experience but nothing special . Below 85% may also need attention.
Requires attention – mostly understood but not on par with the best – should be investigated and has issues that require review.
Poor - Not available or not useful and difficult to follow. Difficult to use. Slow and contains mistakes. Will be adversely affecting user experience.
Very Poor - Did not work or has serious errors. Requires urgent attention if available.
Scoring :
The percentage score is calculated by taking the score given by surveyors for each question and dividing by the total possible amount for each question.
Excellent Average RequiresAttention
Poor Very Poor
Benchmarking 4 3 2 1 0
Banding Score (approx)
90% or more 80%-89.9% 70%-79.9% 50%-69.9% Less than 50%
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eMysteryShopper Methodology
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• An eMysteryShopper survey was conducted to compare the end to end usability of 49 leading UK retail web sites
• For each site, 20 surveys were completed. Of these, 10 surveyors completed purchases, and 5 surveyors completed refunds.
• The survey looks in detail at the following site sections:
• First Impressions (Homepage)• Browse• Search – Navigation and Keyword• Items Found (Product Pages)• Shopping Basket• Purchase• Registration / Login• Delivery• Returns / Refunds• Customer Service Contact (Telephone)• Customer Service Contact (Email)
• Collection was carried out using the eMysteryShopper Panel of internet users in March and April 2010
• Percentage scores refer to weighted average, where if all surveyors gave the top score the result would be 100%
Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
eRetail Benchmark
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
49 retail websites benchmarked
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Overall Performance
Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
The end to end
customer journey
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Sa
tisfie
dD
issa
tisfied
Customer satisfaction across the customer journey
Homepage
Search (Keyword)
Search (Navigation) Product pages
Shopping Basket Purchase Delivery
Telephone Customer Services
Email Customer Services
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Sa
tisfie
dD
issa
tisfied
Best and worst practice across the customer journey
*NB: No email contact available for Play, BHS and Asda Direct. No telephone contact available for asos. No keyword search for „onestop‟phoneshop These websites were given a score of zero.
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
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Overall score: End to end process
JD Sports achieve 1st place overall.
The high score has been mainly driven by good online performance (best in class product pages) as well as excellence for offline aspects - delivery and customer services.
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
First Impressions(Homepage)
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
What are customers‟ first impressions of the site when they land on the homepage?
Is the website proposition clear?
Do they want to continue to browse and shop?
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
First Impressions (Homepage)
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The promotional advertisements clearly
stand out
Bright homepage with easy navigational
options“The home page is well
organised and easy to navigate. The advertisement for the 70% off blue cross sale clearly stands out and encourages me to look
further” - Debenhams
“The home page is very bright and easy to navigate, it shows all
the current offers and promotions” - Debenhams
Clear and logical layout
“The home page is clearly laid out and it was easy to find the area of interest”- Debenhams
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Search & Browse
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Is it clear how to navigate the site?
Does the keyword search produce accurate and relevant results?
What is the scope of the search? Can you filter results?
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Search (via Keyword)
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Easy to locate and notice search box
“The keyword search was very accurate and had many options
to refine it. It was fast and corrected spelling errors” – M&S
Intuitive, fast and accurate keyword
search facility
“The search button was easy to locate and use. I found all the
searches quickly and accurately”–M&S
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Search (Navigation)
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Logical and easy to use Top navigation buttons
“The navigation buttons at the top are very clear and easy to understand and use” – Argos
Left hand navigation filters facilitate researching process
“Navigation around the site is really simple. I love the was you can filter the products by department and price and that it shows you how many are in
each filter selection” – Argos
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Product Pages
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Is there enough information to buy from the page?
Is product information clear and detailed?
Are there alternative images of the product? Can you see detail?
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
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Product Pages (Items Found)
Good quality photos depicting product from
different angles
Clearly displayed prices
Zooming facility enable to view products in
greater detail
“The item pages were perfect. You were offered several photos of the item, as well as a good description. The ability to zoom in on the photos meant you could see the photos in greater detail”
– Figleaves
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Shopping Basket
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Is it clear what items are in your basket? Are you shown an image / description?
Are delivery options and timescales shown?
Are you confident this is a secure site?
Is it easy to add / remove items from your basket or continue shopping if you wish?
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
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Shopping Basket
Clearly displayed product pictures
Full list of available delivery methods and charges
Clearly displayed security logos and payment methods
“The shopping basket was excellent - I liked that there are pictures in there of the products and that you can select your delivery type and it tells you the cost and the length of time it
will take” – New Look
“The shopping basket clearly shows the items in the basket - description and photo” – New
Look
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Purchase
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Are instructions through checkout clear and straightforward?
Is the payment made in a secure environment?
Do you receive an order confirmation online and/or via email?
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
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Purchase
Easy and straightforward checkout process
All content and information is transparent, allowing for
smooth transaction
“An absolutely faultless and completely easy to follow ordering process. Everything is well detailed and simply explained” – Amazon
“The order process is very straightforward, with clear and user-friendly instructions. There was a good choice of delivery options. I received a confirmation immediately, which was well laid out, with clear purchase
information and return policy clearly explained” – Amazon
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Delivery
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Did the item arrive within the specified timescale?
Were the item(s) in good condition?
Was inner and outer packaging suitable?
Was all relevant delivery documentation and information included?
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Delivery experience
Helpful text message informing customers about the delivery time
“The 2 texts were very useful to confirm/change delivery, plus it was good to receive info on actual
delivery time” – JD Sports
“The delivery service is one of the best I have experienced. Order was in
excellent condition” - asos
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Delivery timescale
Percentage of deliveries that were made on time or early:
Average deliveries made on time/early:
89%
“The order was received on time and in excellent condition. It was well
packaged. The delivery note was clear and accompanied by clear returns
information” - asos
“The order arrived very promptly. It was well packaged and the goods were
presented very well. The documentation was clear and easy to
understand” – Ann Summers
“The order arrived in 2 days, well inside the delivery timescale. It was well
packaged and in excellent condition. Delivery documentation was clear and
helpful.” – M&S
Vast majority of online retailers benefit from punctual delivery times
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Customer Service Contact Telephone
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Was it easy to find relevant contact information and get through to customer services?
Was the advisor polite, helpful and professional?
Were they able to answer your query fully?
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Customer Service Contact - Telephone
Prompt and quick response to telephone query
Friendly, polite and knowledgeable customer service advisor
“My call was answered promptly and I was happy with the response given.
The call taker was able to answer query without having to put me on hold to
consult with another”– New Look
asos were given a score of 0 (zero) for having no email contact facility
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Telephone (time taken to answer)
“I was very impressed with the service. My call was answered by a live operator immediately, who
listened to my query and responded in a friendly, courteous and efficient manner. She answered my query confidently and made me feel that she was
happy to help” - Waitrose“A very polite and helpful advisor answered my call, which assured me that in an event of dissatisfaction I could easily turn to their
telephone service and would not be let down” -Waitrose
Polite and friendly customer service advisors who take an ownership of any raised issue
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Customer Service Contact email
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Brand Loyalty
First Impressions/Homepage
Navigation (Browse and
Search)
Product Pages
Shopping Basket & Purchase
Delivery
Customer Contact
(Telephone/email)
Returns/
Refunds
Did you get a satisfactory response to your email enquiry?
How long did it take to receive a response?
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Customer Service Contact - email
Surveyors were impressed with the quality and speed of an email response
“I was very impressed with how quickly me email enquiry was responded to. The reply
was friendly and very helpful” - Ocado
“I received an automated e-mail acknowledging receipt of my message. I got a full response
within an hour. This was very well written and addressed my query. The staff member
demonstrated good knowledge and offered further ways to contact the company if
required”- Ocado
BHS, Play and Asda were given a score of 0 (zero) for having no email contact facility
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email – time taken to respond
Speed of email response is vital for maintaining high levels of
customer satisfaction
“I received a very prompt reply, which answered my query fully and was well
written and courteous. My experience was therefore extremely positive and it
would encourage me to use this site again..” - Amazon
Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
This latest eRetailBenchmark study points to the following sites as leading the industry either across all or within specific customer touchpoints.
JD Sports
Placed 1st across all customer touchpoints. A consistently strong performance for both front end (online) and back end (delivery/customer contact) systems. Particularly strong on Product detail pages, checkout process and customer contact. It is this combined performance of an effective and engaging website combined with strong offline back end system to support customer contact
M&S
Another good all round performance across all sections, with very high scores on site search (keyword).
John Lewis
Consistently in the top quartile across all sections moving to the top 10 when customer contact was made.
Amazon
Whilst scoring lower on some areas, Amazon achieved high ratings on navigation, despite the extensive online range, boosted by the ability to pre filter a keyword search by department and easy to use filtering options. Once registered Amazon provided our surveyors with a smooth and quick checkout process and email support.
Asos
Would have been placed in the top 5 were it not for the inability for customers to telephone. Although asos has an industry leading response time (1 hour) on email queries, this mono-channel customer contact proposition does not appeal to all customers, who marked asos down for not being able to telephone an advisor.
Summary
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
The latest eRetailBenchmark results highlight key areas of strength and weakness throughout the customer journey.
Across the sector, retail websites achieve their highest ratings for search and navigation, driven by effective site search (keyword) tools, clear navigation (Left hand and top tabs) and subsequent filtering/refining of results.
Top performers were M&S and HMV for site search and New Look and Figleaves for navigation. However, although overall this area performed well, there was still some variability across the websites surveyed, particularly for site (keyword) search. Key causes of frustration for our surveyors were irrelevant results returned from site search and the inability to filter/refine results returned or the filter options being different to what was needed.
The key underperforming area was email customer contact which was primarily driven by the speed of response, with on average on 29% of emails responded to within 12 hours.
There was also a very high degree of variability in the customer experience with some outstanding service but also examples of poor service. Our research indicates customer expectations are for a response to an email query (which actually addresses the query) within 12-24 hours.Moreover, the industry is moving fast with asos now promising a response within 1 business hour to all email queries – this will only serve to increase customer expectations and force the industry to address their strategies for this customer touchpoint.
Another area of mixed performance was for the product detail pages, which are the primary source of a customers purchasing decision. Industry leading sites were Figleaves, JD Sports and asos, who provide all the customer information required to make a purchase decision.
These sites delivered well on the basics of clear pricing and product benefits, but also provided alternative product images and relevant product recommendations. Asos now have a „view catwalk‟ video on the majority of their products giving the customer an alternative way of viewing the product on a real model.
Summary
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eDigitalResearch – Mobile enabled Sites
With some websites now launching a version of their site
design specifically for mobiles.
This development is a major boost for customers who will
now be able to search, browse and shop their favourite
sites whilst on the move.
eDigitalResearch have begun evaluating each of the
websites within eRetailBenchmark using at least ONE
survey being completed based on viewing the site from an
i-Phone.
Although this is small scale, initial results indicated a high
degree of variability for the customer experience, even
when only browsing the site.
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Comparing the eDigitalResearch Benchmark studies
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Sa
tisfie
dD
issa
tisfied
(15 websites surveyed) (12 websites surveyed)(49 websites surveyed)(45 websites surveyed)
eDigitalResearch Benchmark comparison
Industry Comparison High, Low & Average scores
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
eDigitalResearch – Who are we and what do we do
• own system
• outstanding technical support
• team of research professionals (MRS/ESOMAR)
We are one of the leading providers of
digital market research
• reducing costs
• faster results
• improving accuracy
We are migrating traditional market research to digital
methodologies
• social networking (digital communities)
• automated intelligent qualitative analysis
• industry norms/benchmarking
We are developing and introducing innovative
research solutions
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
• „Closed group‟ research• Usability &
„end to end‟ experience• Focus groups
eMysteryShopper
• „Open‟ user research• Visitor/user opinion
• Key performance indicators• Brand advocacy
eDigitalSurvey
• Omnibus research • Client panel management
• Media panels
ePanelManager
• Web 2.0• 3 way dialogue from
profiled users• Product ratings
• Net chats
eDigitalCommunities
• Automated qual-to-quant text analysis
• Full reporting of verbatim comments across any digital
medium
eBuzzBox eDigitalHR
• Staff surveys• 360 degree staff feedback• Employee communities to
improve engagement
Product overview
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Private & Confidential© eDigitalResearch 2010Issue 33
Contact details
www.eDigitalResearch.com
Berrywood Business VillageTollbar WayHedge End
SouthamptonSO30 2UN
Tel: +44 1489 772920Email: [email protected]
Director: Michelle Fuller ([email protected])Associate Director: Steve Brockway ([email protected])
Research Analyst: Naomi Greene ([email protected] )
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