More than 92% of internet shoppers would abandon their favourite brands this year due to outdated technology

More than 92% of internet shoppers would abandon their favourite brands this year due to outdated technology

Newly released survey results suggest that ensuring ecommerce sites run smoothly is even more critical than anticipated this Christmas, with more than 92% of internet shoppers switching to alternative brands if their websites experience technical problems.

Earlier this week Mega Monday saw online sales rise by more than 20% compared to the equivalent day last year and IMRG, the trade body for online retailers, now believes total sales for the December shopping season may bust its predictions of £6.4 billion.

But retailers are risking losing customers as they fall at the first hurdle with slow connections and outdated systems, as revealed in the new national survey of 1,000 consumers.

The study, conducted by the business-to-business arm the TalkTalk Group Opal, together with YourSayPays.co.uk, has suggested only 25% of people would revisit an e-commerce site and reattempt a failed transaction; fewer than 9% would wait more than 15 minutes for site repairs to be conducted before looking elsewhere.

With contingency plans and emergency site protocol already in place, many key retailers’ preparations are well founded, as those with the most purchase power at Christmas are also the most impatient browsers. For every male shopper that said he would forego his favourite brand following technical issues, 25% more women felt the same. In addition, a mere 18.4% of under-24s seconds said they’d retry the same online purchase later that day if it hadn’t run smoothly the first time.

E-tailer bandwidth upgrades advised

Andy Lockwood, transformation director at Opal, commented: “So many businesses rely on their broadband connections to deliver mission-critical systems such as POS [point of sale] chip and PIN authorisations, stock management and online trading, and at Opal, we are committed to developing a true business grade broadband proposition that will enable enterprises across the UK to benefit from a NGN [next generation network] that will match their needs and future-proof their business as well as shoring them up to take on sales spikes.

He added that e-commerce merchants should look for assured upstream and downstream bandwidth rates and internet protocol (IP) virtual private network (VPN) services.

“IPVPN provides the opportunity for a business to review their operational processes and improve ICT access for employees, with the option to host servers in the WAN [wide area network] cloud,” he added.

“We’re seeing millions invested every year into maintaining the online presence of both smaller and more major vendors, and as shoppers increasingly rely on online purchase opportunities, those decision makers that upgrade their systems will see an excellent return on investment. Even if a site does encounter problems, using the latest connectivity products gives all retailers a key advantage.”