E-retailers must harness customer intelligence on their websites – or risk losing out on millions being spent online during this year’s Christmas boom.
This year consumers in the UK are expected to spend over 3.6 billion online. E-retailers could boost sales by a further 20 per cent in order size if they refine their search strategies to reflect recommendations from other shoppers.
According to collective intelligence specialist Avail, 64 per cent of retailers are ignoring their customers’ behaviour on their site – and are failing to improve the shopping experience for new or returning customers. This information can be implemented to improve search facilities by recommending similar purchases based on previous shopping baskets or revealing the most popular product combinations.
“Getting site visitors in front of the most relevant products is critical for all e-commerce sites, particularly Christmas, when retailers look to secure large orders,” said Dr Rolf Elmér, CEO, Avail. “If shoppers can’t find the presents they need quickly and easily, they will quickly move on.”
“Using customer intelligence to power search facilities increases order sizes by up to 20 per cent. Ignoring this data could mean missing out on millions at Christmas,” Elmér continued. “No retailer can afford to miss out on this revenue at the busiest time of year, so it is critical systems are in place now to cope with festive demand.”
