eRetail Benchmark Study Findings

For informed direction

eDigitalResearch
eRetail Benchmark Study
Issue 33 Prospect
Client
March 2010 – April 2010 Screenshot here

Private & & Confidential
Private Confidential
© eDigitalResearch 2010
Private 33Confidential
Issue &
Issue 33
1

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.

Private & Confidential 2
Issue 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

Issue 33

Key Findings

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.

Issue 33

Summary
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.

Issue 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 Requires Poor Very
Attention Poor
Benchmarking 4 3 2 1 0

Banding Score 90% or more 80%-89.9% 70%-79.9% 50%-69.9% Less than 50%
(approx)

Issue 33

eRetail Benchmark

Issue 33

eMysteryShopper Methodology
• 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.
Brand
Loyalty
• The survey looks in detail at the following site sections: First
Returns/
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage
• First Impressions (Homepage)
• Browse
• Search – Navigation and Keyword
• Items Found (Product Pages) Customer
eRetail Benchmark
Navigation
Shopping Basket
Contact
• (Telephone/
(Browse and
Search)
• Purchase email)

• Registration / Login
• Delivery
• Returns / Refunds
• Customer Service Contact (Telephone) Delivery
Product
Pages
• Customer Service Contact (Email)
Shopping
Basket &
• Collection was carried out using the eMysteryShopper Purchase

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%

Issue 33

49 retail websites benchmarked

Issue 33

Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Overall Performance
The end
Customer
Contact
(Telephone/
to end Navigation
(Browse and
email) customer Search)

journey

Product
Delivery
Pages

Shopping
Basket &
Purchase

Issue 33

Customer satisfaction across the customer journey
Telephone Email
Search Search Shopping Customer Customer
Homepage (Keyword) (Navigation) Product pages Basket Purchase Delivery Services Services
Satisfied
Dissatisfied

Issue 33

Best and worst practice across the customer journey
Satisfied
Dissatisfied

*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.

Issue 33

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
Issue 33
13

First Impressions Brand
Loyalty

(Homepage)
Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Customer
Navigation
Contact
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
What are customers‟ first impressions of the email)

site when they land on the homepage?

Is the website proposition clear? Delivery
Product
Pages

Shopping

Do they want to continue to browse and
Basket &
Purchase
shop?

Issue 33
14

First Impressions (Homepage)
The promotional
advertisements clearly
stand out

Bright homepage with
easy navigational “The home page is well
options organised and easy to navigate.
The advertisement for the 70%
off blue cross sale clearly stands
Clear and logical “The home page is very bright out and encourages me to look
layout and easy to navigate, it shows all further” - Debenhams
the current offers and
“The home page is clearly laid promotions” - Debenhams
out and it was easy to find the
area of interest”- Debenhams

Issue 33

Search & Browse Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Is it clear how to navigate the site?
Customer
Navigation
Contact
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Does the keyword search produce
accurate and relevant results?
Product
Delivery
Pages

What is the scope of the search? Can you Shopping
Basket &
filter results? Purchase

Issue 33
16

Search (via Keyword)
“The search button was easy to
Easy to locate and locate and use. I found all the
notice search box searches quickly and accurately”–
M&S

Intuitive, fast and
accurate keyword
search facility

“The keyword search was very
accurate and had many options
to refine it. It was fast and
corrected spelling errors” – M&S

Issue 33

Search (Navigation)
“The navigation buttons at the top are very clear
and easy to understand and use” – Argos

Logical and easy to use
Top navigation buttons

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

Issue 33

Product Pages Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Is there enough information to buy from Customer
Contact
Navigation

the page?
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Is product information clear and detailed?
Product
Delivery
Pages
Are there alternative images of the Shopping
product? Can you see detail? Basket &
Purchase

Issue 33

Product Pages (Items Found)
Clearly displayed
prices

Zooming facility enable
to view products in
greater detail

Good quality photos
depicting product from
different angles

“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

Issue 33
20

Shopping Basket Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Is it clear what items are in your basket?
Are you shown an image / description? Customer
Navigation
Contact
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Are delivery options and timescales
shown?
Product
Delivery
Pages

Are you confident this is a secure site? Shopping
Basket &
Purchase

Is it easy to add / remove items from
your basket or continue shopping if you
wish?

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21

Shopping Basket
Clearly displayed “The shopping basket clearly shows the items
product pictures in the basket - description and photo” – New
Look

Clearly displayed security
logos and payment methods

“The shopping basket was excellent - I liked that there are Full list of available delivery
pictures in there of the products and that you can select your methods and charges
delivery type and it tells you the cost and the length of time it
will take” – New Look

Issue 33
22

Purchase Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Are instructions through checkout clear
and straightforward? Customer
Contact
Navigation
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Is the payment made in a secure
environment?
Product
Delivery
Pages

Do you receive an order confirmation Shopping
Basket &
online and/or via email? Purchase

Issue 33
23

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

Issue 33
24

Delivery Brand
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Did the item arrive within the specified
timescale? Customer
Contact
Navigation
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Were the item(s) in good condition?

Product
Was inner and outer packaging suitable? Delivery
Pages

Shopping
Basket &
Purchase
Was all relevant delivery documentation
and information included?

Issue 33
25

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

Issue 33
26

Delivery timescale
Percentage of deliveries that were made on time or early:

Vast majority of online retailers benefit from
punctual delivery times

“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

Average deliveries
made on time/early:
89%
“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

Issue 33
27

Customer Service Contact Brand

Telephone
Loyalty

Returns/ First
Impressions/
Refunds Homepage

Was it easy to find relevant contact
information and get through to customer Customer
Contact
Navigation

services?
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

Was the advisor polite, helpful and
professional? Delivery
Product
Pages

Shopping
Basket &
Were they able to answer your query Purchase

fully?

Issue 33
28

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

Issue 33
29

Telephone (time taken to answer)
Polite and friendly customer service advisors who take an
ownership of any raised issue

“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
“A very polite and helpful advisor answered query confidently and made me feel that she was
my call, which assured me that in an event happy to help” - Waitrose
of dissatisfaction I could easily turn to their
telephone service and would not be let
down” -Waitrose

Issue 33
30

Customer Service Contact Brand
Loyalty

email Returns/
Refunds
First
Impressions/
Homepage

Did you get a satisfactory response to
your email enquiry? Customer
Contact
Navigation
(Browse and
(Telephone/
Search)
email)

How long did it take to receive a
response?
Product
Delivery
Pages

Shopping
Basket &
Purchase

Issue 33
31

Customer Service Contact - email
Surveyors were impressed with the quality and speed of an
email response

“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
“I was very impressed with how quickly me addressed my query. The staff member
email enquiry was responded to. The reply demonstrated good knowledge and offered
was friendly and very helpful” - Ocado 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

Issue 33
32

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

Issue 33
33

Results and summary

Issue 33

Summary

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.

Issue 33

Summary
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.

Issue 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.

37
Issue 33

Comparing the eDigitalResearch
Benchmark studies

Issue 33

eDigitalResearch Benchmark comparison
Industry Comparison
High, Low & Average scores
Satisfied
Dissatisfied

(45 websites surveyed) (15 websites surveyed) (49 websites surveyed) (12 websites surveyed)

Issue 33

Information on eDigitalResearch

Issue 33

eDigitalResearch – Who are we and what do we do

We are one of the • own system
leading providers of • outstanding technical support
digital market research • team of research professionals (MRS/ESOMAR)

We are migrating
• reducing costs
traditional market
research to digital • faster results
methodologies • improving accuracy

We are developing and • social networking (digital communities)
introducing innovative • automated intelligent qualitative analysis
research solutions • industry norms/benchmarking

Issue 33

Product overview

eMysteryShopper eDigitalSurvey ePanelManager

• „Closed group‟ research • „Open‟ user research • Omnibus research
• Usability & • Visitor/user opinion • Client panel management
„end to end‟ experience • Key performance indicators • Media panels
• Focus groups • Brand advocacy

eDigitalCommunities eBuzzBox eDigitalHR

• Web 2.0 • Automated qual-to-quant • Staff surveys
• 3 way dialogue from text analysis • 360 degree staff feedback
profiled users • Full reporting of verbatim • Employee communities to
• Product ratings comments across any digital improve engagement
• Net chats medium

42
Issue 33

Contact details

www.eDigitalResearch.com

Berrywood Business Village
Tollbar Way
Hedge End
Southampton
SO30 2UN

Tel: +44 1489 772920
Email: info@edigitalresearch.com

Director: Michelle Fuller (michelle.fuller@edigitalresearch.com)
Associate Director: Steve Brockway (steve.brockway@edigitalresearch.com)
Research Analyst: Naomi Greene (naomi.greene@edigitalresearch.com )

Issue 33

eRetail Benchmark Study Findings

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