The Resources Center

E-commerce sites that win awards and revenues have a few vital things in common. They are a commitment to a constantly improving user experience and customer-centric business priorities. The win is meansured, not in awards, but in sales.

As a fragile economy and gas prices are starting to affect buyer behavior, more and more consumers are opting to spend their hard earned dollars online. With retailers offering free delivery, customers are seeing the value of shopping online as gas prices continue to cut away more and more of their paychecks.

E-commerce tactics suchs as free shipping and discounts are beginning to flood retail websites and as a result online retailers are implementing new technologies into their website to make it seem more customer-centric.

Gap.com has made it easier for their customers to shop all four of their brands at the same time. This "universality" technology allows you to quickly and easily move between each brand's styles while having one universal shopping cart. Macy's.com is using "searchandishing" to bring the most relevant response to customer inquiries and get it to them more quickly. AE has added PayPal as a payment option.

Other popular trends in online retailing are customer reviews and video-on-demand. These options allow users to get another perspective or see the product in use without actually having to go to the store. Zappos.com and QVC have integrated these new technologies into their websites setting the standard in online retailing.

Market Segment Focus

There is also a rise in retailers entering into the underserved market of large-size apparel. Currently four of the top 50 favorite online retailers specialize in this niche market. It is likely they will continue to stay prominent due to the fact online retailing allows a more relaxed environment and the opportunity to try clothing on at home.

Economic Impact

Online retailing has become such a large business, credit ratings agency Moody's is now acknowledging the impact of online retailing. Now, companies with online sales and online strategies will be given more weight when it comes to analyzing the company's play on the internet.

E-commerce has changed dramatically since its humble beginnings in the mid 1990's and it will continue to shape the way companies do business in the future. Companies such as Target and JCPenny are already including online sales in their same-store sales figures, a trend we believe will continue to other companies in the future.