'Wrong metric cost retailers 65% online value'

if brick and mortar retail companies thought online investments yielded less profit, rethink your business strategy and slightly change the outlook at the return on investments. according to the new york-based research firm, jupiter media metrix, more than two-thirds (69 per cent) of brick and mortar retailers judged their online success by wrong metrics.the internet techology research and analysis firm said that the brick-and-mortar retailers would find that the roi of their websites were 65 per cent higher if they took into account the non-transactional benefits of their sites rather than just taking into account sales that occur online. "sole focus on site profitability causes brick and mortar retailers to miss nearly two-thirds of the value that their sites create," the research firm said. the latest jupiter retail infrastructure research report said that 45 per cent of consumers used retailers' websites to research a product before buying it in that same company's store. jupiter analysts said that only internet pure-play retailers should focus solely on driving profits from their websites, otherwise there should be an integration of online and offline systems. the survey found that 46 per cent of retailers cited sales as the primary measurement for success of their sites, while 23 per cent focused on profits from their sites. while only 31 per cent of retailers provided visibility of brick and mortar store inventory on their websites, another 23 per cent were expected to offer such thing in the next 24 months. terming the integration of online and offline systems as inevitable - at least for large retailers, jupiter advised retailers to delay aggressive efforts till they had up-to-date software built to latest web-based standards. brick and mortar retailers could not ignore the impact that their websites had on store purchasing just because it was difficult to quantify, said ken cassar, senior analyst with the company. according to him, those retailers would lose offline market share to smart competitors if they only focussed on sales and profits from their sites instead of concentrating on the elements that would send an online visitor with purchase-intent into its stores. so, include the non-transactional benefits of your site while evaluating it and see the profits or return on investments rise - if not online then offline.