E-businesses better prepared for this year's holiday season

[November 14th 2000]

Small and mid-sized e-businesses are more prepared for holiday shoppers this year, according to a recent survey of 1,390 Internet merchants by ePublicEye, a company that monitors e-businesses for reliability and customer satisfaction. The survey found that 93% had secure credit card processing up from 85% in October of 1999, and the need to allay consumer's privacy concerns has also caught on, as 91% reported they have privacy policies published on their Web site.

Beyond the basic issues of credit card security and privacy, the survey found that 83% have inventory tracking, 92% offer order tracking, 92% have return polices posted on their Web sites and 72% offer an unconditional money back guarantee. The distinguishing feature separating the merchants surveyed was on-line interactive customer service. 20% reported having on-line customer support and among those who didn't, 22% said they planned to have it in time for the holiday shopping season.

"This year we've seen the sophistication of small and mid-sized Internet merchants jump by leaps and bounds. We believe this is due in part to the ubiquitous media attention that has been given to on-line security and privacy issues and to the proliferation of turn key Web stores that automatically equip small e-businesses with the fundamentals required to conduct commerce on-line," says Errol Smith CEO of ePublicEye.com.

69% reported that they were planning special promotions for the holidays, 28% said they planned to offer free shipping and 10% said they would be adding more help to assist during the season.

"Many small and mid-sized merchants offer unique and one-of-a-kind products that can make great gifts for the hard to impress person on your shopping list. The concern has routinely been, will boutique e-businesses deliver. Last year ePublicEye point of sale surveys indicated that boutique merchants had average customer satisfaction rating of 87%, and an average on-time delivery rating of 81%. Our recent survey suggest that Internet boutiques will be a viable source for on-line shoppers this holiday season," said Smith.

And who do small and mid-sized business prefer when it's time to ship their customer's orders? 66% use the U.S. Postal Service as their primary shipper while 20% reported offering Federal Express as a shipping option.

Links
ePublicEye		http://www.epubliceye.com