Consumer Confidence Slips Online
Holiday e-shopping snafus, and concern over risks associated with online buying eroded consumer confidence in the Internet, and more people expect to spend less on the Net in the upcoming quarter, a study has found.
The lower rating was fueled by customer service problems, less reliable delivery of goods, credit-card security concerns and questions about how personal data is used, according to a Yahoo/ACNielsen survey report issued today.
The latest Internet confidence index of 111 points represents a four-point drop from the previous quarter’s 115-point rating, but it is better than the second- and third-quarter results, the survey found. The baseline index of 100 was established by findings of the inaugural survey published in June 2001.
Moderator Comment: Is the eroding consumer confidence
aspect of the Yahoo/ACNielsen report much to do about nothing?
The more people that go online, the more problems will
present themselves. That said, the overwhelming majority of consumers shopping
online have positive experiences. E-tail sales should continue to grow by number
of shoppers and total dollars for quite a time to come yet. [George
Anderson – Moderator]