19 April 2007
Report shows high street retailers could lose £7bn online sales this Christmas
A new benchmark study reveals that some of the UK's biggest retailers are set to miss out on the predicted £7bn online sales bonanza this Christmas because their websites make it too difficult for shoppers to browse, find and pay for goods. Confusing search results, poor navigation and complicated checkout procedures are among the worst mistakes identified in The Online High Street 2006, published today by web usability specialists Webcredible. The report evaluates the websites of 20 of leading high street stores against 20 key usability criteria, awarding each a Web Usability Index rating out of 100.
Marks & Spencer tops the Index with a score of 81 and is the only retailer to achieve more than 75 per cent in the evaluation. The Early Learning Centre and John Lewis also made the top five, with ratings of 74 and 71 respectively. In comparison, Hamleys languishes towards the bottom of the index with 54, as does Debenhams with a score of 50.
Overall, the study shows that retailers are failing to deliver a basic standard of usability and could do much more to maximise the online Christmas opportunity. An alarming 35 per cent of the websites studied failed to achieve a Web Usability Index rating of more than 50. Top Shop and Clinton Cards performed particularly poorly and mail order favourite Next was relegated into the bottom five.
The top five performers and their Web Usability Indices (out of 100) were:
- Marks & Spencer - 81
- Early Learning Centre - 74
- Mothercare - 73
- John Lewis - 71
- HMV - 70
The five worst offenders and their Web Usability Indices (out of 100) were:
- Clinton Cards - 25
- Top Shop - 31
- Game - 35
- Next - 43
- WH Smith - 44
The 20 criteria used to evaluate the websites take into account the complete ecommerce experience, including browsing and navigation, the checkout process, searching, and product display pages. The most common - and potentially the most costly - mistakes made by high street retailers were at the shopping basket and checkout. Confusing purchase processes and hidden 'proceed to checkout' buttons were among the biggest errors.
The report also reveals that many high street retailers are not using their product pages to effectively cross-sell and showcase other items, with an average score of 2.3 out of 5. Websites that don't show an immediate path to a more desirable product are making it much harder for users to find an item that they would like to buy. There are obviously no shop assistants on ecommerce websites, so it's vital that users are given guidance as to which products to buy, for example by highlighting special offers, recommending products or providing user reviews.
The most critical usability errors were:
- Not providing separate links to both the basket and the checkout
- No matter where they are on a website, shoppers should be able to instantly view their basket and proceed to checkout. If visitors can't find these links then they can't buy any products.
- Not providing orientation cues
- These are essential for shoppers to know where they are in a website. If they become lost or confused, starting again on another website is only a click away. The average score was 2.6 out of 5.
- No highly visible 'add to basket' button
- This buttons is an essential item on the product display page and it must be clearly labelled. If visitors can't add goods to their basket, they can't buy them!
- No highly visible 'proceed to checkout' button
- This is the most important item when users are reviewing their shopping basket, so should be placed at both the top and bottom of the screen.
- Users are not shown where they are and where they're going in the checkout process
- Users must be told where they are and how much further they need to go before they complete their purchase. If they get bored or irritated with a lengthy process they may simply abandon the website.
- Not providing a summary page clearly marked 'You haven't bought this product yet'
- Websites have lost millions of pounds by users clicking away from this page without realising they haven't actually purchased their products. Users can often mistake the summary page for the confirmation page, so it must be made very obvious what this page is. The average score for this criterion was just 1.3 out of 5.
Trenton Moss, director of Webcredible, commented: “Independent research shows that as many as 83 per cent of Internet users leave a website because they can't find what they are looking for. Therefore, it's unlikely that visitors will hang around on a website that makes it difficult to find and buy products.
“Our study threw up some real surprises - Top Shop doesn't even provide a search function and incredibly, the Clinton Cards website gives users the option to add products to their basket without actually letting them know how much they cost! We were also shocked to find that only 7 out of the 20 websites provide clear links to the most important pages on the website: the basket and checkout - if visitors can't find them they can't purchase any items!
“High street retailers spend a lot of time, money and effort on the layout and look of their physical store at Christmas time, but many have ignored the golden rules of providing a great online shopping experience. Our study highlights the importance of including usability criteria at an early stage of web development. However, the good news is that retailers still have time to fix some of these problems so they can increase their slice of the estimated £7bn online sales.”
Webcredible conducted the online shopping study in October 2006. The company evaluated 20 websites studies against 20 key usability criteria and awarded each a Web Usability Index rating out of 100. The full listing of the 20 websites is included in the Appendix of the full report, which can be downloaded from www.webcredible.co.uk/highstreet.
About Webcredible
Webcredible is a user experience consultancy, offering a range of usability, accessibility and design services for websites, intranets, mobile devices and applications. The UK-based consultancy researches, designs and builds interfaces to support user requirements & business goals.
With a long list of global clients in the private and public sector, including AIRMILES, uSwitch.com, eBay, the BBC and the World Health Organisation, Webcredible is widely regarded as one of the most respected consultancies in the user experience industry.
