Dive Brief:

• A whopping 70% of shoppers go online just to browse retail websites and have fun as they find the best prices, according to research by e-merchandising company Compare Metrics and e-commerce consulting firm The E-tailing Group. 

• Most gave their web shopping experience a “mixed bag” rating. More than half say most e-commerce sites are "overwhelming" and 64% would like to see smoother site navigation.

• 70% also use search engines rather than site searches to find products they’re looking for because filters misinterpret their searches and fail to show products they’re looking for. 

Dive Insight:

This is a troubling area for e-retailers, which risk turning off shoppers with inefficient searches and overwhelming online experiences. Inefficient filters are especially problematic; any time a customer moves away from a retailer's site to find what they’re looking for elsewhere is a moment that retailer could lose that customer. While this seems obvious, it's clearly a worrisome reality at a time when e-commerce is growing.