Retailers Anticipate an Increase in Ecommerce Revenue and Investment

05/07/2010

Research from the 9th Annual Merchant Survey e-tailing group show that retailers are readying themselves to spend and invest increasing amounts of money on ecommerce in 2010. The group reports 59% of retailers are set to invest somewhat more in ecommerce this year, up 23 percentage points from 2009.

Ecommerce Revenue Is On the Rise

By all indications, 2010 has thus far been a year in which online marketing and merchandising have increased and been tailored to fit industry requirements and categorical differentiators, respectively. President of the AMS, Lauren Freedman states “Seasoned sellers, emerging retailers and manufacturers are…positioning themselves for growth as the economy rebounds…taking a laser-like focus on performance...” Additional factors that can also be attributed to this uptake in spending also include: economic recovery and growth, changing channel priorities, focus on performance and in securing funds for future projects and demands.

92% of respondents in the April 2010 report expect their ecommerce revenues to grow past 2009 figures with significant growth in the 6-15% range, while only 8% reported no growth or a loss in their ecommerce revenue, which is significantly down from 34% last year.

Successful Leveraging in Online Marketing

Online conversion rates continue to challenge retailers, remaining at just 3% or lower for 56% of retailers who participated in the survey. Conversion was also the top point of impact in online marketing where web analytics has played a critical role. It is followed by search marketing (44%) and cart abandonment (38%).

Initiatives to Ensure Ecommerce Viability
In an effort to retain ecommerce customers and in addition to website improvements and refining online search, retailers also list the following as their ongoing online marketing initiatives with greatest importance:

• Free shipping and private sales (49%)
• Redesign for improved customer experience and navigational ease (49%)
• Pinpointing the best in-stock selection (48%)
• Enhancement of onsite search, relevance and landing page optimization (46%)
• Pre-established frequency of tactical e-mails (46%)

Other initiatives cited also included:

• Outreach efforts via social networking being planned by 58% and blogs by 32%
• Personalization/Customization by 52% up from 41%
• Investment in usability or A/B testing by 58% and/or web analytics by 53% in order to help make better decisions
• 39% are planning mobile marketing campaigns versus 19% in 2009

In summary, Friedman stated, “Merchants must ensure that their ecommerce roadmap is clearly defined yet fluid enough to embrace new opportunities throughout the year…being proactive in securing the necessary funds…(for) future demands…keeps merchants on the fast track.”