The majority of consumers consider a secure environment to be the most important factor when shopping online, according to survey results released today by Millard Group Inc., Peterborough, NH.
Security was cited as the No. 1 priority by 91 percent of participants, with sales specials on the Web site rating second.
The findings come from the firm's latest quarterly Online Co-op Survey conducted by its Decision Direct Research division for the quarter ended Aug. 31. Thirty-seven multichannel merchants participated, generating 47,000 customer surveys.
Other findings indicated that 81 percent of participants said they would visit a company's Web site after receiving an e-mail from the company, and 78 percent said they would do so after receiving a catalog. It was the first time in the past three years that the e-mail responses topped catalog.
Twenty-four percent said they accessed marketers' sites from links in e-mails, and 15 percent said they did so from search engines. Sixty-seven percent said they read at least three out of four e-mails from direct marketers.
As for comparison shopping, 60 percent said that they checked one or two other sites while 18 percent said they comparison-shopped extensively, checking multiple sites.
Overall satisfaction with online shopping improved from the previous year in the areas of finding unique items and products meeting or exceeding expectations, to 52 percent and 41 percent, respectively.
Categories that slipped versus last year included in-stock merchandise at 44 percent (from 53 percent), timely order status notification at 60 percent (from 65 percent) and prompt delivery at 53 percent (from 58 percent).
Kristen Bremner covers list news, insert media, privacy and fundraising for DM News and DMNews.com. To keep up with the latest developments in these areas, subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mail newsletters by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters
