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Customer loyalty is important for e-commerce sites

Tuesday, October 15, 2013 - 10:17 by Mike Price

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A new study from Qubit has established that one of the most important elements for success in the e-commerce market is customer loyalty, since this helps sites which deal in shopping online to increase revenues and ensure repeat business.

Interestingly, just one per cent of web users make up about 40 per cent of e-commerce sales, according to analysts, which shows that loyalty is even more valuable than previously assumed.

The study analysed hundreds of millions of page views to come up with the results. The most loyal minority were found to indulge in shopping online with their retailers of choice about 300 times more regularly than the average consumer, with most of these big spenders living in the outskirts of the British capital.

The group of loyal customers identified by the study were also more likely to access e-commerce sites from a tablet device, rather than a desktop computer, which clearly has something to do with affluence as well as general shopping habits.

Qubit spokesperson, Graham Cooke, said that online retailers could use this information to help target their marketing and better address the needs of modern consumers in the UK, according to the Telegraph.

Retailers should also invest in retaining existing customers, as it is this core group that will help to keep their revenues trending upwards.

About 17 per cent of consumers are identified as 'sofa surfers' in the report, which basically describes the habit of regularly visiting e-commerce sites but rarely actually buy anything.

Meanwhile, 2.46 per cent of people create online baskets with various items but never complete the purchasing process.

Just over one per cent of people are identified as speedy shoppers, which means that they place online orders from smartphones, while out and about. This is not only interesting for retailers, but for consumers who want to work out where their habits position them in the scheme of things.