E-Commerce an Easy Sell

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(09/14/2009)

Source: DM News

By: Chantal Todé

Struggling retailers serving cash-strapped consumers are looking for ways to make the shopping experience easier, and many find their e-commerce Web site is a great place to start.

"We wanted to give customers a convenient shopping experience online that matches the experience in stores," says Christina Callas, VP of e-commerce at Lord & Taylor, about the store's relaunch of its Web site on iCongo's platform.

From Web-enabled in-store kiosks that give shoppers access to a wider selection of merchandise to the ability to chat with a customer service representative directly from the Web site, retailers are investing in a variety of digital strategies. All of these are designed to make it easy for consumers to browse, do research, make a purchase or return a product.

Lord & Taylor's product pages were redesigned for the new site with larger product images and zoom functionality. In addition, there is a pop-up window with tab functionality that gives consumers access to a lot of information about each item without having to click through to a different page. Other features include a search filter that enables customers to search for items using several criteria at the same time.

"This gives the customer a lot of shopping power right there on the category page," says Callas.
Lord & Taylor also is working with a new, centralized fulfillment provider and a new third-party call center. "We wanted to be able to deliver a higher level of service and a centralized brand experience," says Callas.

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Since relaunching the Web site last fall, Lord & Taylor's e-commerce sales have doubled, traffic is up and conversion is up, Callas reports.

Lord & Taylor, for its part, added a button to its product pages several months ago so shoppers can "share" an item on their social networking site.

Taken together, the retailer's moves to enhance its Web site and the online customer's experience reflect "the growing importance of e-commerce to Lord & Taylor," says Callas.

With that growth in mind, Lord & Taylor will allocate additional spend this holiday season to its current marketing efforts in support of the Web site, which include display and banner ads, affiliate marketing and e-mails.

The retailer will also hold some online-only events this holiday season, including exclusive online sales, promoted as Lunch Break events, which take place between noon and 2pm.

"We have much more robust marketing [around the Web site] because of the anticipated growth trajectory of the e-commerce business," says Callas.

News Source : E-Commerce an Easy Sell