Customer service, goods are better online, study reveals
[Karin's Take] The message on this is simple: if you don’t have a website and aren’t helping your customers online, you’re missing the boat. Customers are now more satisfied buying online than offline. Give them what they like. ##
BY GRETA GUEST | Source: Detroit Free Press
Online retailers are delivering the goods and better customer service than traditional stores, according to a University of Michigan study expected to be released today.
AdvertisementCustomer satisfaction with online retail was even with last year at 83 points on a 100-point scale, but surpassed brick-and-mortar retailers by 12%, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index.
“Against a backdrop of weakening consumer spending and talk about recession, e-commerce will continue to be a bright spot for multichannel companies,” said Larry Freed, president and CEO of ForeSee Results in Ann Arbor, which partnered with U-M’s Ross School of Business on the survey.
Satisfaction with the online marketplace has risen by 8.5% since 2000, according to the index.
At the same time, online retail has grown into a $136.4-billion industry, up from $32.6 billion in 2001, according to U.S. Census Department data.
Overall customer satisfaction with goods and services purchased declined in the fourth quarter and that combined with falling home prices, rising energy prices, tighter credit and higher unemployment may mean even more challenges ahead for consumer spending growth, said Claes Fornell, head of the American Customer Satisfaction Index.
“In such an environment, customer satisfaction becomes even more important because satisfied buyers tend to reduce seller’s cash flow volatility,” Fornell said.
Customer satisfaction with the offline retail sector…
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