Recent research suggests that many of the websites we will use to do our Christmas shopping are riddled with problems.
A report from SciVisum, a firm that specialises in creating and testing web applications, has said that many retailers face losing out on this revenue as visitors get frustrated with the errors they encounter.
Deri Jones, chief executive of SciVisum, said: "Christmas has always been make or break for retailers, so it amazes me that in the season of good will retailers are prepared to test the patience of consumers by serving up websites riddled with problems.
"Our study found that people wanting to buy goods online would come up against a number of problems from self-emptying shopping baskets and incomplete web pages to session swap incidents - where two users see each others' online sessions," continued Jones.
Research from market analysis firm Forrester found that the UK is the largest online retail market in Europe, with consumers in this country likely to spend an average of £509 each online in the run-up to Christmas.
According to SciVisum, retailers with websites that aren't up to scratch won't benefit from the forecast £13.6bn that will be spent online this year before the festivities begin.
"Companies wanting to maximise their online sales this Christmas need to check the performance of their sites now. Those that fail to do so might as well include a link to their competitors' site," said Jones.
A separate report from Global Reviews, a website benchmarking firm, issued last week found that there was a large variation in the kind of information and service offered by online retailers.
Though Amazon.co.uk offered good gift services, it didn't have enough details about delivery options, according to the research. The Apple Store didn't impress when it came to gift services, but offered very good information about the products it was selling.
Adam Goodvach, director of Global Reviews said: "Some customers know what they want to buy for their loved ones but many more are uncertain. Websites offering gift selections provide an advisory service that is valuable to customers and will keep them coming back."
www.scivisum.co.uk
www.forrester.com
www.globalreviews.co.uk
Claim 50p off Web User's Ultimate PC & Web Workshops!
Back to index
RSS Feed : Latest Web User News
Claire Woffenden, Editor
