Challenges ahead for online retailers

28/11/2008

Ecommerce businesses are about to face their biggest challenge ever, an industry expert has warned.

Online retailers have enjoyed sustained growth in recent years - but with success comes competition.

In a Net Imperative column, Geoff Galat, vice president of marketing for customer experience management solutions provider Tealeaf, said that competition will make life tough for ecommerce firms.

The effectiveness of Google means customers can soon find rival sites selling similar products if one business fails to offer the level of service expected, he continued.

Online trading still offers retailers "unparalleled opportunities", Mr Galat said, but only to those who make a real effort to satisfy customer needs.

"Companies need to take a good hard look at their online channel and make sure that the customer experience is optimised," he added.

His comments follow Yahoo's decision to offload its European shopping site Kelkoo to private equity firm Jamplant.