Survey: Shipment tracking, live chat most desired e-commerce features

Online service provider Limelight Networks has announced the results of a survey of 1,600 consumers. Limelight Networks sought to determine what customers wanted from online customer service.

Respondents ranked the following three online customer service features as the most important in their decisions to make online purchases. Consumers also stated what would make them return to sites for future shopping:

• The ability to track my shipment and delivery status online at the site or on my mobile phone (79 percent)
• Online customer service chat or instant message (45 percent)
• Video demonstrations of required assembly or installation (39 percent)

Surveyed consumers also ranked the website features that would make them most likely to use online self-help rather than call customer service:

• Live 24x7 chat with a product expert or customer support representative (52 percent)
• Personalized, secure login that remembers my preferences and product model numbers (43 percent)
• Searchable database with summaries of videos, online manuals, etc. (35 percent)
• Instructional step-by-step video demonstrating how a product is used, assembled or installed (31 percent)
• Forum to chat/IM/discuss topics live with other users (13 percent)
• Mobile support information so I can get support while I am away from my desktop computer (11 percent)

The research found that respondents who spend more than $301 a year shopping online for travel services, clothing and accessories, and electronics demand online customer service features more than respondents shopping for any other services or items. The following are the percentage of surveyed consumers who find online customer service extremely or very important in their decision to purchase on a site and return to the site to shop again:

• 76 percent shopping online for travel services
• 65 percent shopping online for clothing and clothing accessories
• 59 percent shopping online for electronics and computers/computer equipment

The survey also revealed that those who shop online more frequently — who said that in addition to holiday shopping, they shop online more than once a month — demand customer service features more than those who shop online less often:

• 53 percent of those who shop online more than once a month find online customer service extremely or very important compared to,
• 45 percent of those who shop online once per month, and
• 40 percent of those who shop online every 4 to 6 months