Coremetrics Benchmark™ Industry Report

Online retail registered an encouraging increase in ecommerce activity in March 2009 compared to February 2009 (month over month). Consumers who shopped online in March purchased nearly 12.0 percent more items compared to the previous month, while the average dollar value increased by more than 4.0 percent, suggesting that not only were consumers buying more items online, they were actually spending more money on average than they had just the month before.

Unsurprisingly, year-over-year retail metrics for March remain down across the board compared to March 2008. The average number of items per order, average order value and shopping cart conversion all fell significantly—8.1 percent, 6.3 percent and 3.4 percent respectively—compared to March 2008.

Results at a Glance

  • Health and beauty retailers were big winners in March, with the average number of items per order increasing by 6.9 percent and the average dollar value of their orders increasing by 5.3 percent. Furthermore, consumer engagement with these sites, measured by page views per session and the average time they spent on sites, rose by 3.2 and 12.0 percent respectively from February.
  • Jewelry retailers also reported marked increases in the average number of items per order and their corresponding average dollar value, which rose by 13.8 and 13.4 percent respectively.
  • Intimate apparel retailers reported flat to slightly positive results in the average number of items per order and their corresponding average dollar value, which rose by 0.2 and 0.3 percent respectively, while page views (1.4 percent) and average time on site (2.0 percent) rose slightly.
  • Sports apparel and gear spending was slightly down, with the average number of items per order decreasing by nearly 2 percent while the average dollar value of their orders decreased by 1.3 percent. Furthermore, consumer engagement with these sites, measured by page views per session and the average time they spent on sites, decreased by 10.8 and 1.0 percent respectively from February.

Benchmark Industry Report for U.S. Retail:
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  Metric Feb-09 Mar-09 % Change
(m/m)		 Mar-08 % Change
(y/y)
  Page Views Per Session1 11.69 11.39 -2.58% 12.78 -10.89%
  Average Time on Site (in seconds)2 481.08 476.13 -1.03% 615.20 -22.61%
  Average Items/Order3 5.21 5.82 11.74% 6.33 -8.09%
  Average Order Value4 $138.26 $143.93 4.10% $153.62 -6.31%
  Shopping Cart Conversion Rate5 34.39% 34.52% 0.38% 35.75% -3.44%
             
 

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About Coremetrics Benchmark:
 
Metrics
1. Page Views/Session The average number of pages viewed by visitors
per session.
2. Average Time on Site The average length of time for a visitor session.
3. Average Items/Order The average number of items purchased per order.
4. Average Order Value The average value of each order.
5. Shopping Cart Conversion % Out of all visitors who placed items in their shopping carts, the percentage that placed an actual order.
 
 

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U.K. Retail

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