Skip to navigation
Latest News

Tesco checks out first in online grocery shopping

By Alun Williams

Posted on 15 Dec 2006 at 15:00

When it comes to online grocery shopping, the likes of Tesco, Ocado and Sainsbury's jostle for trolley space in the virtual aisles. A new study, however, suggests Tesco is leading the pack. It performs 'head and shoulders above its competitors,' according to Keynote Systems.

The company measured the major websites in terms of site availability and performance - specifically, the time it took to 'load' items into the virtual shopping basket.

While some sites processed items quickly - for example, Ocado lead the way with a 5.23 second load time - other sites laboured - for example, Asda recorded a staggeringly slow 31.17 to load. Conversely, the slower sites had better stats for availability.

Beyond giving a boost to Tesco morale, however, the report highlighted the obstacles faced by online consumers, particularly in the run up to Christmas. For example in order to buy one item from one of the retailers, a user needs to go through several pages in order to put an item into the basket and proceed to checkout.

Over the three days of measurement, Tesco lead the way with an average load time of 5.694 seconds and site availability of 99.47 per cent. Next best in the combined rankings was Ocado (5.232 seconds, 93.804 per cent), then Sainsbury's 20.362 seconds, 98.952 per cent) and Asda (31.17 seconds, 99.27 per cent).

'Load testing and preparation for December's peak traffic is usually done during the summer but it seems that some retail sites underestimated the increasing reliance on web commerce and are now falling behind,' said Haran Sold, VP and MD EMEA of Keynote Systems. 'As a result, some customers are being let down by the companies they are traditionally loyal to, often forcing them to consider a competitor.'

Back in September, another report also highlighted how UK retailers are shutting out disabled shoppers with poor site design. All of the UK's top 30 retail websites failed to meet the most basic of accessibility requirements, according to Nomensa, the consultancy firm which has an interest in Internet accessibility.

It estimated that retailers would lose £376 million of potential revenue this Christmas as a result of websites that are difficult to use.

'There are over 10 million disabled people in the UK, and I believe that each one of those has a right to be able to buy a Christmas present online for a friend or loved one this year,' said Simon Norris, Nomensa's MD. 'These research findings show that anyone with serious physical impairments, the visually impaired or even just people wearing glasses to read would encounter difficulties and in many cases would give up trying.'

One factor that may help the online supermarkets is an agreement over clear pricing. In March of this year, the Office of Fair Trade (OFT) said it had brokered a commitment to provide clearer details on the cost of produce. They reportedly agreed to provide more upfront information about their guide price policies and how their online shopping process worked.

The main issue the OFT was tackling was that the prices charged on delivery were different from those advertised on the vendor's website. Specifically, the supermarkets committed to the principle that the prices shown online are the actual prices for that day (in the store from which the goods will be assembled for delivery).

Subscribe to PC Pro magazine. We'll give you 3 issues for £1 plus a free gift - click here

From around the web

User comments

Click & Collect holding online shopping back

I believe the future of online grocery shopping is in developing the service offering. At the moment, the experience of buying online vs. buying instore is quite comparable.

Buy instore and you get to look at the food and make (perhaps more) informed choices. Buy online and the process is quicker.

What I believe the big supermarkets are missing in improving the speed of delivery. Personally, if I’m shopping for food, it’s because I’m close to (or have actually) run out! I’m not always willing to wait for the delivery slots available.

I recently worked on a website development which involved a ‘click and collect’ service. The website (http://www.weetons.com) allows customers to buy their groceries before 10am in the morning and collect them after 3pm the same day. This means no excessive delivery charge (as you can order as much or as little as you want) and instant gratification.

Perhaps when the supermarkets catch on, we’ll really see a bigger shift towards online.

By weetons on 21 Apr 2010

Leave a comment

You need to Login or Register to comment.

(optional)

advertisement

Most Commented News Stories
More From PC Pro
Latest Blog Posts Subscribe to our RSS Feeds
Latest ReviewsSubscribe to our RSS Feeds
Latest Real World Computing

advertisement

Sponsored Links
 
SEARCH
SIGN UP

Your email:

Your password:

remember me

advertisement


Hitwise Top 10 Website 2010
 
 

PCPro-Computing in the Real World Printed from www.pcpro.co.uk

Register to receive our regular email newsletter at http://www.pcpro.co.uk/registration.

The newsletter contains links to our latest PC news, product reviews, features and how-to guides, plus special offers and competitions.