Summary by Danielle Paradis

 

Consumers have been attracted to online shopping due to the huge assortment of goods that is readily available on Internet sites.  In addition, online shopping offers the convenience of shopping from home at any time.  The web also allows for simple price comparisons to shop for the best deal.  Online shopping has seen the emergence of discount e-tailors who offer brand name merchandise at discount prices.  One such discount e-tailor that has received a lot of press is Bluefly.com.  This online shopping site has also set the trend of bridging the gap between traditional and web advertising by placing full-page ads in fashion magazines.  The ads feature merchandise from the site that can only be acquired by visiting and browsing the bluefly.com site. 

           

Gomez.com has ranked the top 15 retail sites in various categories as ease, customer confidence and customer service just to name a few.  Ranked first on the site was Eddie Bauer.com followed by Nordstrom.com, Saks, L.L. Bean, and Spiegel in the top five.

 

The online retailing industry has experienced the slowest growth in the e-commerce category.  This slow growth can be attributed to the limitations of technology, although improvements are being made.  Tools are being added to allow the online shopper to see the item on the computer screen more clearly.  A 360-degree view of the item is available on some web sites.