Almost 70% of retailers are wrongly judging the success of their internet investments on top-line return on investment (ROI) metrics such as online sales and profits, according to research from Jupiter Media Metrix released last week.
Companies that look at the non-transactional benefits of their sites ÂÂ- including online influenced sales and improved payroll productivity ÂÂ- will find that the ROI of their websites are 65% higher than if they only considered sales that occur online, says the report.
“Brick and mortar retailers should not blindly follow the lead of their pure-play competitors by adopting a laser-like focus on the profitability of their websites,” said Ken Cassar, senior analyst, Jupiter Media Metrix. “A typical brick-and-mortar retailer’s website can yield financial benefits well beyond the transactions it generates. Jupiter estimates that nearly two thirds of the total web benefit for retailers will be in offline transactions influenced by online research.”
These comments echo those found by Forrester Research, which reported that online retailers are not considering offline effects when evaluating the ROI of their websites (see Forecasts).
