The on line shopping experience: A comment and your thoughts please

Triathlon Forum
1

With the E-bay thread, and obviously a lot prior to that, we have discussed on-line shopping habits and what consumers want/need in a shopping experience (on-line and brick and mortar). Here are a couple of our thoughts and I welcome (NEED!) your comments:

  1. Amazon.com commisioned some kind of a study (can’t remember where I read this, “WIRED” magazine I think)with their customers to determine if people’s PRIMARY motivation for shopping on line with Amazon was low price or convenience. If my memory serves me correctly, the study revealed the primary reason people use Amazon (and the web in general)for shopping is convenience, price is secondary.

  2. The on-line shopping experience seems optimized for “cookie cutter” transactions and commodity items. Example: Buying the latest Tom Clancy book on line and not having to deal with the line (and the drive, and the parking) at Border’s or Barnes and Noble is an attractive alternative to me. It shows up here at my office in three days. Buying a suit or even dress shirts for me on line is a no go since my little Italian man where I buy my suits (every two years when I actually buy one) is not on line. The transaction has too many variables and is too cumbersome to happen effectively on line.

  3. Vendors who attempt to impose restrictions on their products being sold on line face an up hill battle. They may do well to adopt a measured “It’s better to join 'em than fight’em” attitude.

  4. The increase in on line retail sales, and the consumer’s dependancy on and preferance for on line shopping has been growing at an impressive rate and shows little signs of leveling off. Vendors who miss the boat have, well, missed the boat.

  5. Fulfillment is the “Golden BB” of on line sales satisifaction. If an on-line retailer drops the ball on fullfillement, they are doomed. Fullfillment is #1.

  6. It is as much about the process as it is about the product, if not more so in some cases. (Six Sigma).

  7. Very few on line retailers are doing it “right”.

  8. On line retail is the great leveler. When your browser is set to 600 X 800 my store is the same size as Amazon.com on your monitor. It is the content that tells the story and makes the sale largely (although in many instances it is pre-made when the person clicks through).

  9. Position in search engines is worth big $$$$$.

Just some rambling. I welcome your comments. Happy Holidays.

2

I like the retailers that have a fast website with streamlined buying. I like when they have an easy return policy. I have a speedo cable for my car that didn’t come with the end drive piece. They didn’t put in the invoice and it’s been a pain to try to return this. The web didn’t have a good enough description and even though it may be easy to return this piece, they have a 20% restocking fee. Perhaps I share in the blame but I like my ordering to be easy and the seller give the complete description or be intuitive to list all the parts needed to do the job. It would have been easy for them to mention that the other piece is not attached (or post a better picture) and a link to the other piece that would also create a second sale for them. Amazon certainly has one of the best ordering sites possible. They have ratings, they suggest other things you may like and they have one click shopping as well as a chance to buy it used. This is a slick system for sure.

3

“low price or convenience”

Tom, that describes it for me. I live in a rural area it and have to travel forty minutes to a small city pop 40,000, an hour to a larger city pop 115,000 and about three hours to a large city pop 3 million. It’s just so much easier to find what I want on ebay and other net places than running aound after it.

Some things you just can’t buy online successfully, or at least there is more risk. Your point about the custom made Italian suit is a good example. A custom made frame is another example but it’s just as easy for me to buy an “off the shelf” P2K or TCR online since I know my size. If I have to change a stem once it arrives, that’s no big deal.

In terms of bikes/tri stuff I’ve bought 90% of what I own online. I’ve also found online bike components, etc are usually cheaper than what the bike shops charge, but that’s not as much of a motivating factor (within reason) as convenience. If I had a good local bike shop nearby I’d be more willing to support them like I do with the local scuba shop. Since I live so far away from a decent bike shop, I can’t get there often enough to establish a good relationship with the owners so aren’t likely to get the preferred customer deals that I often get with our local scuba guys. I posted before that I’ve become my own bike mechanic, fitter, etc out of necessity because of my choice to live in the boonies.So my motivation for online buying may be a bit different from someone living in a large urban area.

4

Tom, first off, I applaud you for embracing online sales in addition to store sales. Few of my local retailers do, and consequently they both miss out on sales they could get from a website / eBay, and they miss out on understanding why customers who would otherwise be loyal to them leave for MUCH lower prices or better product availability online. A couple thoughts:

  1. It’s now very easy to do all of my purchase research online. Through sites like ST and bicyclereview.com, among others, I learn far more about the best products than I ever could from my local retailers, who tend to have narrow perspectives oriented around the products they carry. Like many on this forum, I really enjoy the research part of shopping and the pride that comes with an informed choice. I’ve found that online research is far more productive than offline, and hence I want or need to visit a local store for advice only about 20% of the time.

  2. As a result, the process of product research has been divorced from purchase for many shoppers. I know what I want to buy before I settle on a place to buy it. If I use an LBS to make my decision, then I’ll almost always buy from them since they earned my business. But 80% of the time, I figure out what I want from friends or online. I’ll then buy from whichever place makes the most sense for that product. If it’s a convenience purchase (need it now) or involves service, then I’ll buy locally from an LBS. If it’s something hard to find, I’ll always buy online rather than drive from LBS to LBS. If it’s something discounted heavily online relative to MSRP, then I’ll buy there. It differs from purchase to purchase.

  3. There’s no magic formula for “price vs. convenience vs. selection”. Consumer research ALWAYS shows that shoppers segment into different groups. Some people are price shoppers; others want ambience / experience; others want service; others want selection. It’s up to the retailer to intelligently pick a target shopper segment and serve it better than anyone else. That’s why we have such diversity of retail models - online and offline - that succeed. In Amazon’s case, their consumers probably rate convenience over price because it’s convenience (website design, fast shipping, recommendations) that Amazon is the best in the world at. They do have good prices, but almost never the best online. Their formula is “world’s best online shopping experience with prices competitive online and superior to offline.” In contrast, eBay will never serve well shoppers who most want convenience, ambience, or service. But it’ll win over price shoppers, those seeking hard-to-find items, and those who like the community atmosphere.

  4. Shopping loyalty online is very hard to achieve - much harder than offline. I’ve literally bought from 20+ different online bike / tri stores and 30+ eBay bike / tri sellers. Between eBay and Froogle, it’s trivial to find the product I want and the best place to buy it. My customer service experiences online have always been good (meaning the item showed up, as described, within a reasonable amount of time). Online service has been reduced to a pretty simple common denominator - good in stock, delivered on time = happy customer. To differentiate based on service, and gain loyalty therefore, requires something exceptional. Tom, as an expert in what you sell and someone who communicates that through your website, you are in a unique position to achieve that kind of loyalty. (A segment of) customers will value that advice online just as they do offline. It takes a lot of hard work to communicate that kind of knowledge and help online, but if you do that (unlike the vast majority of commodity retail websites), you’ll gain loyal converts. But per my argument in 3, that will gain you a particular type of customer. You’ve picked your target market. You can’t win everyone, so choose wisely.

  5. The best online strategy is really multi-channel. You may build a great website and compete on unique selection or service / advice. Because that is what you compete on, your online prices may not be any, or much, lower than offline. Simultaneously, to move product at deep discounts, you might dump those on eBay, and thereby not tarnish the positioning of your online or offline store. You seem to be doing this very effectively, with a website, LBS, and eBay sales. Each has a different price / service positioning, and each sells successfully to a different segment.

Anyway, you seem to get it better than the vast majority of retailers in the industry. Best wishes on a great 2004, online and offline!

5

Wow! Now this is the kind of response I was hoping for! Thank you very much.

As for embracing online slaes, well, philosophically I do embrace them, but practically you can’t buy anything from or website. We’ve been within a week of going live with an on line, e-commerce enabled site three times and each time I have killed the project in the 11th hour becasue I didn;t think it was where I wanted it to be. Each time we get a little closer though.

I do believe it is (already has) re-written the retail landscape and will only continue to do so. You’re either moving ahead or you’re falling behind.

Thanks again for the response and have a safe happy holiday!

6

This says it all:

http://money.cnn.com/2003/12/21/news/companies/holiday_raceupdate/index.htm?cnn=yes

Bike companies: ARE YOU LISTENING!?!?!?!?

7

Full-service bike shops are 90 minutes away for me, so I buy most of my parts, clothes, etc. on-line. I generally use the same web-store in Colorado. (Not CC.) Their site is easy to navigate and easy to buy through, and in what seems like a very few days the goods are here. Not flashy, but really effective. I’ve used them for about 4 years now.

I just ordered an overcoat from a “high-end” retailer like those mentioned in the Money article. It arrived two days later, and it contained simple instructions on returns AND a UPS label. All I had to do was take it to a UPS store and hand it over - literally. A few days later, I received an e-mail confirming the return and an estimate of when my account would be credited. Too bad they don’t sell stuff for biking and running!!

8

With regard to Amazon, I use them for books I can’t buy from my local B&N or Borders, specifically car or motorcycle racing related. And I seem to have had better results with Amazon than with Motorbooks. Plus often the price is considerably less, which is not a motivator but a bonus. So I’d say the answer to your ‘question’ is really the selection available online, for specialty items, is greater.

The other ‘online’ shopping I have done is for used bike stuff, from people here on Slowtwitch, and MBR and RBR. My local bike shops seldom have used stuff, although I generally try to deal with them for my (infrequent) new bits and pieces (and for Christmas presents :~)).

Cheers

Barry

9

Tom,

 I remember way back when it was speculated that mail-order was going to be the end of storefront retail.  Then, Eddie Bauer, L.L. Bean and the like started putting stores in malls.  The internet is just another means of "interfacing" with customers and potential customers.  Like another poster had commented, there will always be people who are price driven versus those who place a value on service.  With a full time job, college and training, I don't have time to futz around with mish-mashing a bunch of used  parts that may or may not fit together or work or whatever.  For me, it's faster and more convenient to visit my LBS which is thankfully close and knowledgable and purchase a new carbon widget and have them install/adjust it.

What is funny to me is how difficult to pin down consumer habits can be. Just look at this statement:

<<Buying the latest Tom Clancy book on line and not having to deal with the line (and the drive, and the parking) at Border’s or Barnes and Noble is an attractive alternative to me>>

Using the internet to purchase a tangible object, such as a book. If the book was available “online” would you be as interested in reading it? For me, the answer is no. I love hardbound books and even paperback novels. Even if it was only $0.99 or so to read the book online I wouldn’t be interested. We humans are weird creatures both desirous of new technology and yet rooted in our old ways.

I could talk for hours about this, but I gotta get to work.

Brett

10

Here are some more thoughts that I didn’t get into my first post:

Has the increase in e-tail been a result of increased availability of high-speed internet connections? I remember back in the mid-90’s I used to wait eagerly with anticipation as each page built. The internet was new and exciting. Now, if a page takes more than about five seconds to load, I hit the stop button and go on to something else. If traffic congestion and jammed parkinglots around the mall here in Oly are any indication, brick and mortar are just fine.

“Lord of The Rings III” pulled in 73 million dollars this weekend. Last weekend I went to see “Bad Santa” and the theater was packed. Regal Cinemas is planning on building a new 16 screen theater on my side of town and a twenty something screen cinema on the other side. I’ve seen more movies in the theater in '03 than any other year (except when “Star Wars” came out). What is significant about this? Why are people flocking to the cinemas when they could just wait for it to come out on DVD? It could indicate that we humans are social creatures and while the internet will add a new dimention to our lives, it won’t radically alter them.

Brett

11

Going online for me serves two functions, first it may be to buy something, the amazon.com book buying experience is great. Secondly, and for me, primarily I use it for research, your ability to compare products and prices is nearly limitless. Then purchasing online, calling an 800 number or going to the store becomes a function of who has it, how much is it, and how soon do i want it. But, Tom I’ll always get my bikes from you, the service makes the sale. (Hoping blatant sucking up improves the discounts).

12

Tom,

Suggestion: Put a forum on your online store where you can help people with purchases, questions, life etc… Then you can give a little more LBS feel to help build customer loyalty. It would work for me. Like aardvark said I’ve bought from 20+ stores online but they did nothing really to make me go back to them. It seems to me from your participation on this forum that you’ve already built tremendous loyalty, now all you have to do is open your store!

Best of luck, Andy

13

I use on-line shopping 100% for convenience. As a male I hate shopping; so anything I can buy online I will. Useless fact but a recent study found that the average male can survive about 75 minutes or so of shopping before an arguement develops with his wife/partner. I can shop at work and use my leisure time as I choose.

Amazon is the market leader IMO for CDs, Books, DVDs. I can use my same log in and shop at amazon in the usa, uk, germany (I don’t speak german but it’s the same screens) and they ship all over the world (I’m an expat; so buy for myself and gifts for those back home). I like the reviews, charts, wish lists and the feature which shows what other people bought who bought your item. Hence they get me on impulse buying everytime.

For tri stuff I’ve bought, clothing, tires, inner tubes, oil, grease, turbo trainer, bike computer, GPS watch. What I haven’t bought are shoes (due to fit) and a bike (due to fitting and after sales servicing etc). I enjoy buying from Parkers in the UK as I can view everthing on-line and then call up and talk to someone who can provide advice as well. However, I do intend to support my new LBS which is an hour away when I can.

Because triathletes are passionate about their sport, enjoy talking about it, I think shopping becomes more personal. You don’t walk into the supermarket and talk about the range of 2004 tomatoes for example. I think you’re paying for knowledge when you go to your LBS and I like the fact that I know the guys, hence I will make the effort to drop by.

Hence an on-line bike store would need to replicate this by having detailed reviews (like amazon does for eg) to differentiate itself and create customer loyalty. Similiarly the ability for people, or a small group of approved people, to add their own comments on the products. The Edmunds car website does this very well for cars. As mentioned above a forum would add that community feel.

I think your advice on buying bikes Tom has always been to “buy a bike that fits”. I’d be more than happy to buy a bike from you online if my LBS couldn’t help me but you’ve told me that I shouldn’t. Or something like that.

All the best and make sure you do international shipping as I need something to do whilst I eat sandwiches and drink coffee.

14

I spent 2 hours online looking for “all 4 ninja turtles” (finally found them). How long would that have taken in stores? (I looked at the 2 stores that would have them in the city I live in, most only had 2 of the 4 turltes, and many online stores only had 3) I have to drive 30 minutes to the nearest mall, then walmart, then target, etc. I shopped while I was cooking my food for 3 days.

Online I bought a bike trainer. They’ll deliver it to my house. That beats me having to drive 40 minutes, the bike shop to order one for me, me to drive back a week later to pick it up and possibly pay more for it.

I also went shopping at stores and picked up stuff that was more convenient than purchasing online.

It depends what you are looking for, and how soon you need it.

16

Tom,

Online shopping experiences vary. I think that a prospective seller has to realize that its another store front, that customer service is important and a little different from selling over the counter. With a nice secure easy to use web page and prompt courteous customer service a bike shop would be losing out if they are not doing it, unless they do it wrong. ie don’t return emails, web page doesn’t work, forget to ship something, put off orders to the next day, send the wrong stuff, package it inapropriately, you probably get the drift.

For years I have heard LBS’s complain about how people mail ordered stuff and didn’t buy from them. Well this is what typically happened customer comes in to buy whatever LBS says they don’t have it but can order it and it will be here in two days, price is X. Well customer leaves calls Mail order company or goes on line and it is available and with 2 day shipment the part will be put it in their lap for 20% cheaper so he buys.

Another store front could possibly help improve the size of inventory in the store, I wouldn’t have a bike shop without online/mailorder sales. I think that if you decided to pull the plug on a online web page because you weren’t comfortable I think you are doing the right thing. Get comfortable with the whole concept before doing it, it can hurt your business just as much as bad regular sales.

Big advertisement cost are exactly that be careful, good luck

17

“the average male can survive about 75 minutes or so of shopping before an arguement develops with his wife/partner.”

That must be when they’re in the courting stage and he’s still trying to impress her. It’ll become a lot less once they’ve been married awhile.

18

This relates to the topic at hand and the vaporware threads. I live in a big city (Houston) with many bike shops. Howver there are items especially tri clothing that I cannot buy locally from my LBS but have to go online to purchase.
That being said I recently opined about how even the online retailers did not have the Mavic Win Tech computer and I would I have to wait. WELL big apology to LBS folks! Went to my LBS for some cables and lube lo and behold 2 Win Techs sitting on the counter!! Asked if they were on hold , absolutely not want em both? Bought and even got my tri club discount on it.
No doubt online has its place for many people and for “commodity” items however support the local guy if you can.

Thanks

19

Much of what you say is accurate. The bottom line is this: If you know specifically what you are looking for, and require little or no expertise, you will almost always find that it is faster, cheaper, and more convenient to shop online than to buy something from a store. That, IMHO, is why Amazon is so successful. They have taken many commodity items and offered them in a cheap and easy format for most consumers. Example: I bought a KitchenAid Stand Mixer for my wife from Amazon for $178+free shipping. It arrived in three days. Best price anywhere else? 199-249 plus sales tax and in limited colors. Three weeks before Xmas? No contest.

In some cases, you can also get quite a lot of expertise from particular instances of certain types of shops. There have been numerous times when I have called up the tech people at a company to discuss whether the product would suit my needs, then gone ahead and bought online because I prefer the security, paper trail, package tracking, etc, even when buying from the guy I just spoke to.

As a guy who has done quite a bit of e-commerce development, and actually brought a company online back in 1997, my mantra has always been to offer quality products at good prices, make it easy for a customer to find what they are looking for, offer them all the information they need to make the purchase online, and for God’s sake have the product available to ship within one day or tell your customers otherwise.

Your site should be clean and navigable, and anything you think is a cool whizbang feature should probably be thrown out the window. A good example of a web design no is the new fastsplits.com site. Sure, it looks cool(too cool for its own good, actually), but it is hard to navigate, loading can take forever due to hundreds of fat images, and the product information provided is insufficient to prompt me to purchase anything on the site. That, plus all the flashing stuff going on, make me leave real fast. trisports.com, on the other hand, is an old style, fairly ugly site that is easy to navigate, lists reasonable products details, and makes for a quick and easy shopping experience. Plus, they always ship the same day using Priority Mail or better, so I get my stuff in 2-3 days.

That is an example of form over substance. A cool looking site is just that, but customers only care about that for 8 seconds. If your site hasn’t loaded by then, they’re already gone.

It all really does come down to price, availability, and convenience. If you have what people want at the right price, and ship efficiently, you will do well. That’s one reason so many mail order companies do well online. Their fulfillment systems are already good.

Well, this could get long, so I’ll stop with this for now: Remove the obstacles that come between your customers and your products. This is true for both retail and the online experience.

20

As the first person on the board with a WinTech, can you answer if a polar s-710/720/510, will pick up the speed from the skewer?

21

Do not those HRM’s so I have no idea. See my post on the wintech aeroness issue. Regarding the problem I did have with it.