European Online Sales To Almost Treble By 2005, Says GartnerG2
Online sales in Europe will reach Eur97.8 billion (£60.4 billion) in 2002, a 47.7% increase on the Eur66.2 billion of 2001, according to data released this week by GartnerG2.
| European online retail spend (Ebn) | ||||||||
| 2002 | 2005 | |||||||
| Total | PC | Digital TV | Mobile | Total | PC | Digital TV | Mobile | |
| France | 4,349 | 4,019 | 163 | 167 | 25,516 | 14,572 | 6,258 | 4,681 |
| Germany | 23,257 | 22,713 | 267 | 271 | 75,678 | 61,042 | 7,417 | 7,219 |
| UK | 11,239 | 10,835 | 247 | 156 | 54,509 | 38,093 | 12,008 | 4,408 |
| Source: GartnerG2, March 2002 | ||||||||
Linking online with offline GartnerG2 advises online retailers to very precisely focus their market segments in order to stop wasting resources competing for broader, direct sales. This may even include strategies to drive users to make purchase offline, where appropriate, and should embrace a combination of PCs, mobile access devices, digital TV and the physical shop itself.
“Linking the online channels with offline channels is the ultimate key to success and buyers will desert those companies that don’t get this right,” said GartnerG2 analyst Gill Mander. “For example, digital TV is not always the ideal medium for selling and the limitations of the mobile phone are immediately apparent – however, each can play a vital role in improving customer relationships, branding and loyalty, resulting in greater profitability in a market where margins continue to fall.”
GartnerG2 forecasts that by 2005, 73% of online shopping will be conducted over the PC, 17% through digital TV and 10% through mobile devices.