Wishlist includes improving customer experience, conversions and fulfilment logistics

Site search, search engine optimisation (SEO) and mobile commerce (m-commerce) all feature highly on retailers’ current ‘to do’ lists according to new industry research.

The results of a global survey of nearly 500 retailers revealed that improving conversions (63%) and attracting more customers to their websites (61%) are the biggest challenges retailers face, in addition to improving logistics and expanding internationally.

To address these challenges in advance of the 2012 Christmas season, the survey – commissioned by site search and merchandising technology provider SLI Systems – found retailers planned to address these challenges by upgrading or changing their ecommerce platforms (18%), improving their site search functionality (18%) and SEO efforts (17%) and solidifying their mobile commerce strategies (15%).

Product finder and mobile focus

In order to ensure website visitors can more easily find the information and products they are looking for, retailers are also planning to focus on improving or adding multivariant A/B testing (52%), refinements, (48%), merchandising capabilities (39%) and rich auto complete functionality (34%) to their site search strategies.

Given the unprecedented growth in adoption of online shopping via mobile, nearly half (40%) of retailers also said they will add a mobile version of their website in 2013, with 20% planning to create a mobile app.

Survey Monkey conducted the “2012 ECommerce Trends Survey” online on behalf of SLI Systems. The poll, which gathered feedback from nearly 500 e-commerce business managers and executives globally, was conducted through November 2012.