Survey: Retailers unsatisfied with cross-channel capabilities

New York City -- Many retailers are not satisfied with their ability to meet customer expectations for a seamless cross-channel experience, according to a survey conducted by Edge Research for Sterling Commerce, an IBM company.

The survey revealed several significant gaps between what consumers want and what retailers are currently delivering. A retailer’s ability to meet consumer expectations -- and deliver a seamless, cross-channel experience -- will be the deciding factor in their ability to survive in the age of the empowered consumer.

Key survey findings include:

• While 85% of consumers say they expect a seamless brand experience across all channels, only one in 10 retailers feel they currently excel at cross-channel execution.
• Six out of 10 retailers claiming they cannot yet provide cross-channel order history.
• While 87% of consumers say they expect retailers to be able to track an order via any channel, only 46% of retailers offer this capability.

Asked how satisfied they were with their ability to provide a positive retail experience, 39% of retailers said they were very satisfied with their abilities in physical locations, and 35% were very satisfied with their abilities through their ecommerce operations over the Internet. However, only 21% percent were satisfied with their ability to deliver cross-channel capabilities.