Ecommerce retailers are under increasing pressure to achieve revenue targets and many are rethinking their engagement strategies to respond to customers current shopping behaviors in order to make it possible.
One of the ways online sellers are doing this is by extending their offering/platform with marketplaces, providing a broader assortment of products and services, boosting customer loyalty, average order values and trust with the seller along the way. For ecommerce retailers looking to drive additional revenue through the use of marketplaces however, there is much to know. Fortunately, a new study of consumers in the France, Germany, UK and the U.S. released by Mirakl and ChannelAdvisor, "Retailers Must Seize the Marketplace Opportunity" (conducted by Forrester Consulting), provides some useful guidance for those sellers considering the approach.
95% of respondents agreed that marketplaces offer the convenience they appreciate
The study revealed that online consumers shop on marketplaces at least three to five times per month. This is because the marketplace allows
consumers to explore, discover, and purchase multiple
products and services on a single website.
88% of consumers citing ratings and reviews as important attributes to purchasing via an online marketplace
Building trust is a central part of marketplaces. User generated content, such as product reviews, influences shopper buying decisions. This visibility into product and seller performance builds consumers' trust in a seller, even if the seller is unfamiliar to them.
94% of those surveyed said they would shop with same marketplace again if getting a similar product
Consumers are able to differentiate between the retailer and marketplace seller. If consumers have a poor shopping experience, they are able to identify what went wrong and why. Two-fifths of consumers who have had an issue with their marketplace purchase told us that they would not purchase from that seller again but would shop with that marketplace again. If managed well, the marketplace will not affect the retailer's brand negatively.
