Online retail sales in 1999 increased fourfold from 1998, totaling an
estimated $16.2 billion, up from $4.5 billion the previous year, according to
a new industry report.
And online buyers placed more than 176 million retail orders — almost a 300
percent increase over 1998, according to BizRate.com’s fourth quarter Consumer
Online Report.
The figures are based on the experiences of more than 1.3 million online
buyers who participated in point-of-sale surveys at thousands of retail Web
sites.
The report also showed that the average household income for online buyers in
fourth quarter 1999 was $81,200; in contrast, the average household income
for first-time buyers was $67,100, evidence that online buying is becoming
more mainstream.
The report also shows that women are embracing e-commerce in record numbers,
with 58 percent of all new online orders placed by females.
Other key findings:
- Nearly 45 percent of 1999 revenues were generated during the fourth quarter
alone - Web referrals were the No. 1 traffic driver to merchant sites, accounting
for 47 percent of online sales. Print referrals lagged far behind in the No.
2 slot, at 19 percent - During the fourth quarter of 1999, average sales per day peaked on Tuesdays
at $98 million, followed by Mondays at $96 million Weekends were slower for
online buying, with Saturdays at $56 million and Sundays at $66 million
BizRate.com predicted that nearly $40 billion will be generated from retail
e-commerce
in 2000. BizRate.com’s proprietary customer ratings of their e-commerce
experiences are derived from more than 3,600 online stores where direct
customer feedback and transactional information is acquired at the point of
every purchase.
