Top 100 Online Retail Satisfaction Index

by Deepak Sharma on Tuesday, June 05, 2007

According to a latest report released by ForeSee Results titled Top 100 Online Retail Satisfaction Index (downloadable after registering), online retailers Netflix Inc., QVC Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. are doing a good job of satisfying visitors to their Web sites.

With strong customer satisfaction scores of 85, Netflix.com and QVC.com lead the list of Top 100 retailers. Rounding out the top five in terms of providing a satisfying online experience are Amazon.com (83), Barnes & Noble’s BN.com (82) and Drs.FosterSmith.com (81). Scores in the 80s on the ACSI’s 100-point scale are almost universally considered superior.

Some key findings from the report:

    • Satisfaction leads to loyalty and future purchase. There’s a tight link between online customer satisfaction and consumers’ propensity to choose a particular retailer above all others the next time they buy similar merchandise. Led by Amazon.com with a score of 84, four of the top five retailers from a satisfaction perspective also have the highest “likelihood to purchase next time” scores. QVC.com scored 82, while both BN.com and Netflix.com had “likelihood to purchase next time” scores of 81. Companies that satisfy their customers will be repaid with repeat visits and  purchases.
    • Surprise! It’s not all about price. While people typically rate price the lowest of all the drivers of online satisfaction, it’s rarely the aspect of the shopping experience with the greatest potential to increase satisfaction, purchase and loyalty. In fact, improving satisfaction with price would have the greatest influence on increasing overall satisfaction for only 5% of the Top 100 sites. What does this mean? Price is only one part of the value equation. For many shopping sites, improvements to the site experience and the brand would have more influence on desired behaviors than  lowering prices.
    • Online satisfaction drives positive word of mouth recommendations. Satisfied customers are also more likely to recommend the retailer to their family, friends and colleagues. Netflix.com, QVC.com and Amazon.com, which had the three highest satisfaction scores, also had the highest “likelihood to recommend” score. Netflix.com excelled with a score of 85, followed closely by Amazon.com and QVC.com at 84.
    • Web satisfaction improves shoppers’ satisfaction with the company overall: Online shoppers of the top-performing sites are 15% more satisfied with the retailer overall than are customers of the lower-scoring sites (retailer satisfaction score of 83 vs. 72). Improving satisfaction with the online shopping experience has a halo effect on the entire company.

More Links:

PC World - Top E-Retailers Named