Tech Trends: Sticking with Amazon
Amazon just turned 10–and it seems to be aging gracefully. The online retailer, which sells everything from books to gourmet cheese, ranked No. 1 in overall customer experience in a new study by E-commerce research firm Keynote Systems [Customer Rankings for Retail Web Sites (PDF)]. The data comes from a survey of 2,000 consumers, conducted while they were logged on to 20 different retail sites. Amazon also got top marks for visual appeal–and this is no mere beauty contest. A pleasant online experience means more Amazon shoppers are likely to buy something than they are at other Web stores, and more return to the site to shop again.
Measured another way, however, Amazon and other Web-only sites fell far behind some "brick-and-mortar" retailers that also sell over the Internet [Service Level Rankings for Online Retailers (PDF)]. When Keynote checked things like a website's uniformity and reliability and how long it takes to download pages or check out, the top finishers were Williams-Sonoma, Wal-Mart, and Eddie Bauer. On such technical merits, Amazon didn't crack the top five. (Keynote won't break out its results further than that.) But Amazon's top ranking in customer experience suggests that technical shortfalls don't keep customers from clicking through to the end of the checkout process.
Even for the languishers, the future looks bright. Online commerce continues to surge as more households acquire broadband access and sites like Google make comparison shopping easier than ever. Merrill Lynch forecasts E-commerce growth of 20 percent for the second quarter, about three times faster than growth for traditional retail spending.
Top shopping websites:
Overall Customer Service
- Amazon.com
- Barnes & Noble
- L.L. Bean
Visual Appeal
- Amazon.com
- Land's End
- Eddie Bauer
Overall Service
- Williams-Sonoma
- Wal-Mart
- Eddie Bauer
Reliability
- Eddie Bauer
- Barnes & Noble
- Staples
Source: Keynote Systems