Retail Benchmark Study

E-COMMERCE AUDIT
50 TOP
RETAILERS
A BENCHMARK STUDY
Conducted: Q3 2018
Published: Q4 2018
TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Introduction 3
Background & Methodology 4
Benchmark Study – The Numbers 6
Site Security 7
Pre-Checkout: Global Observations 8
Mobile Specific 16
Tablet Specific 21
Product Listing Page 25
Product Display Page 31
The Cart / Bag / Basket 52
Checkout 59
Shipping Screen 61561
Payment Screen 62
Brick and Mortar Integration 65
Head-Scratching Moments 67
Conclusion 73
About NordicClick 75
E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 2

INTRODUCTION
Thank you for your interest in our 2018 Retail E-Commerce Benchmark Study. This is our
second annual study and we’ve made several changes to our audit process and improvements
to the overall presentation. We hope you find it fascinating, engaging, and most importantly –
as actionable guidance for your e-commerce business.
As with any study, we found data that:
• Educated us
• Surprised us
• Inspired us
• Challenged us
We’ve been around e-commerce for a long time and this kind of data really lets us nerd out. If
you feel the same way, we invite you to read on and enjoy!

Adam Proehl; Partner & Co-Founder
NordicClick Interactive

BACKGR O U N D & M E THODOLOGY
As a digital marketing agency, NordicClick works with clients on their e-commerce strategy and
optimization. We frequently conduct e-commerce audits to help our clients understand where
they are, but more importantly, where they could be. Our audit covers a whole host of areas
from the initial store home page all the way to post purchase retention activities..
We’re frequently asked by our clients, “How do we compare to competitors? Who’s doing it
well? These questions made us curious so a year ago we created our first Retail E-Commerce
Benchmark Study to be able to provide some answers.
Like last year’s study, we took our basic e-commerce audit and applied it to the top retailers
in the US. With that in mind, our approach was very similar to last year so the elements of the
study were as follows:
Our goal was to use as much of our audit template as possible. Given that we only have access
to public facing websites, we were limited in scope. For this study, we limited the checklist to
questions to that which we could only answer 1 as “yes”, 0 as “no”, or not applicable.
Retailers selected from this audit were pulled from the National Retail Federation Top 100 for
2017. (Source Link: https://stores.org/stores-top-retailers-2017/). From that list, we made the
following exclusions:
• Amazon • Wireless carriers
• Retailers no longer in existence • Restaurants

• Grocery store chains
Restricted to desktop, tablet, and mobile web only. Some of the retailers have Native Mobile
Apps. We did not do an e-commerce audit of apps. This was restricted entirely to browser-
based shopping.
The study was conducted over the months of June and July 2018. The data is current as of that
time. It is entirely possible that an e-commerce store has made updates since then that would
alter the results of the study. It is noted that this study should be considered a benchmark of
data that was current as of July 2018.
The checklist we used covered key items over ten categories.

There are some cases where a “Top Retailer” is a brand of the parent company that has
several under its umbrella.
The audit list contained bona fide retailers only. We did not do an audit of brands selling
directly (example: Nike.com was not audited even though they have a large e-commerce
presence).
Given the exclusions noted above, this should not be considered an audit of “The Top 50
Retailers.” It’s an audit of “50 OF THE Top Retailers.” Please note the difference. The list of
retailers benchmarked in this study includes the following:
HOME IMPROVEMENT CLOTHING SPECIALTY
The Home Depot Target Barnes & Noble
IKEA LOFT Kay Jewelers
Lowe’s Companies Maurices GameStop
Ace Hardware Belk Apple
Bed Bath & Beyond H&M Foot Locker
Williams-Sonoma Burlington Coat ULTA

Factory
SEARS Michaels Stores
Neiman Marcus
Kohl’s Office Depot
JC Penney
Menards Staples
Gap
Dollar General PetSmart
Ross Stores
Dollar Tree Petco
BJ’s Wholesale
O’Reilly Auto Parts Club Bath & Body Works
AutoZone Nordstrom CVS
True Value Co. TJMaxx Best Buy
Sherwin-Williams Macy’s Dillard’s

Automotive
Dick’s Sporting Walmart
Tractor Supply Co. Goods
Walgreens Big Lots
Academy Sports

BENCHMARK STUDY:
THE NUMBERS
SITE SECURITY
Starting in July 2018, Google Chrome began marking all “http” sites as “Not secure.”
Figure: Google Chrome Security Example
Simply put, domains will either say “http,” which is insecure or “https,” which is secure. When a
site is secure, there will be a padlock displayed next to the domain in the upper left-hand corner
along with the word, “Secure.”
Figure: Target Secure Site
AUDIT RESULTS
Not Secure
44 of the 50
companies had
secure websites.
Secure
0 10 20 30 40 50

PRE-CHECKOUT: GLOBAL OBSERVATIONS
This category can best be described as the overall site experience prior to the checkout. We
cover specific things like the product listing and product display pages later in the study in more
detail. This section focuses on elements that would be present on the overall site.
#1 THE “INTRUSIVE POP UP”
An intrusive pop up displays immediately upon landing on an e-commerce site. It always

prompts you for some type of action (take a survey, enter your email address, etc.). Sometimes
the pop ups will offer something of immediate value in exchange for customer information.
Examples include some of the following:
Figure: Barnes & Noble Intrusive Pop Up
This is an example of an
“Equitable Exchange of
Information.” It could be
argued that “free shipping”
is an expectation in today’s
e-commerce world, but
that isn’t the point. This
customer is being asked
for personal information
and given something that
has a tangible value (that
Figure: TJMaxx Intrusive Pop Up
can be measured).

AUDIT RESULTS
The “Intrusive Pop Up”

was present on 18 out of
50 Retailers audited.
Yes No
#2 SITE SEARCH
It’s no secret that having search functionality on e-commerce sites is critical to success. If your
company has a large list of products, make it simple on your customer to look for them.
Figure: Home Depot Search Bar
Figure: Ross No Search Bar
AUDIT RESULTS
Of the 50 retailers audited, 49 of them had site search functionality present. The only one
that did not (Ross Stores) also did not have an e-commerce offering.

#3 SITE SEARCH SUGGESTIONS
Since Google introduced site search suggestions, users have come to expect to have a similar
experience when using other websites.
Figure: Google Site Search Suggestions
Retailers that follow a similar practice are at a considerable advantage. Providing an

autocompleting site search helps the customer to efficiently find what they’re looking for.
Figure: Walgreens Autocomplete Search Bar
No automatic
completion
Figure: Gap No Automatic Completion Search Bar
AUDIT RESULTS: Of the 50 retailers audited, 44 of them had autocompleting site search
functionality.

As a side note, we noticed one of the 50 companies made their site search ability fun for visitors.
Using a catchy tagline will catch the eye of customers.
Figure: Petco Fun Search Bar
#4 WAS / NOW FORMAT MARKDOWNS

If you confuse your customer, you’ll lose your customer. It’s really that simple – be as
obvious as you can. The exact wording doesn’t have to be “was/now,” but the principle
should be consistent. The example below does a excellent job of showing the customer:
- What the price was
- What it is now
- How much the customer saves without having to think
Figure: Home Depot Was / Now Format

AUDIT RESULTS
41 of the 50 companies used the Was/Now format.
Two retailers do not have e-commerce so in a way it doesn’t apply, but in another way it does
since they certainly want to drive foot traffic into the store. One of the retailers has a flat price
($1 for everything) so this is not applicable.
#5 INVENTORY NOTIFICATION ALERTS

This feature was not common within the 50 websites audited. Inventory notification alerts allow
customers to type in an email or form of contact information to ensure they will be told when
the wanted item is back in stock.
Figure: Inventory Notification Alert Example

AUDIT RESULTS
Only 1 of the 50 companies had the ability to sign up for inventory alerts. This does not
appear to be something that top retailers are embracing.
#6 LIVE CHAT AVAILABILITY

This live chat example pops up on the landing page of Dillard’s. Most often, this is where live
chats will be found.
Figure: Dillard’s Live Chat
However, there are various types and

locations for this feature. For example,
Michael’s Stores has a live chat that is
only run by customers online. When
you enter the site, you are prompted to
help other customers within the live chat
feature. If you help at least 3 customers,
you can become a “coach.” Here are
some examples:
Figure: Michael’s Live Chat Feature

Figure: Michael’s Live Chat Feature
This unique live chat is interesting, however – you must be careful when enabling it on your site.
You never know when people may be giving incorrect or inappropriate answers.
Another aspect of live chat that guarantees success is being available during peak hours.
Although Belk is not 24/7, they have posted their hours online, so customers know when they
can expect to be helped.
Figure: Belk Live Chat Hours

Figure: PetSmart Non-Available Live Chat
AUDIT RESULTS
23 of the 50 retailers had live chat ability.

#7 DESKTOP SITE SPEED OPTIMIZATION SCORE
Google has made it no secret that it places significant value on site speed. The most important
consideration, however, is for the end user. Think about your own experience when visiting a
website. The last thing you’re likely to tolerate is a slow site. Google has provided a Page Speed
Insights Tool that tests sites’ optimizations. Note that the score is out of 100. Below are the
results from the retailers that were audited. Link to PageSpeed Tool: https://developers.google.
com/speed/pagespeed/insights/.
DESKTOP AVERAGE: 59.46

MOBILE AVERAGE: 80
MOBILE SPECIFIC
#1 IMMEDIATE APP PROMPTING
Most of the top retailers have native mobile apps specific for consumer shopping, but nothing
can be more annoying that shoving it right in a customer’s face the moment you visit the
website:
Figure: Lowe’s App Prompting

Figure: Lowe’s App Prompting
AUDIT RESULTS
Only 11 of the 50 Top Retailers immediately prompted the user to download an app.
#2 IMAGE AND PAGE RENDER

Simply put, you must ensure your images and overall website are rending properly on a mobile
device. A blurred or poorly organized page can quickly turn away a customer.
Apple is a great
example of a properly
rendered site.
Everything is clear
and clean (sounds a
little like their brand
efforts).
AUDIT RESULTS: 44 of the 50 companies

audited had mobile sites that rendered
properly.
Figure: Apple Image & Page Render

#3 VIEWPORT
When viewport is configured correctly, a website’s page width will not change on different
devices. This includes when a phone is vertical facing or flipped horizontal. Here are some
examples of good and bad viewports:
Good Bad
Figure: Macy’s Viewport Figure: Bed Bath & Beyond Viewport
Bad
Figure: IKEA Horizontal Viewport

AUDIT RESULTS
45 of the 50 companies had a properly configured vertical viewport while only 39 of the 50
companies had a properly configured horizontal viewport.
#4 GOOGLE’S MOBILE FRIENDLY TEST

In a “mobile first” world, you need your e-commerce operation to be up to the task. Google has
a simple Mobile Friendly Test that determines whether they feel your site passes muster.
Figure: Mobile-Friendly Test Example
AUDIT RESULTS: 49 of the 50 companies passed the mobile friendly test. The LOFT was the
only company whose website did not pass. A couple notes:
- It is a “Pass/Fail” response
- This does not mean that the site is “Mobile Optimized”
- Google is essentially measuring whether a mobile browser is likely to render all the elements
properly for a handheld device.

#5 FONT SIZE LEGIBILITY
Note the difference in contrast between the two figures.
Figure: Sherwin-Williams Font Size Figure: Tractor Supply Co. Font Size
Left: Right:
• White Background • Gray background
• Gray font • Black font
• Small font • Big font
• Difficult to Read • Easy to read
AUDIT RESULTS: 40 of the 50 Top Retailers used font type that was legible on mobile.

TABLET SPECIFIC
#1 IMAGE AND PAGE RENDER
Similar to mobile, but specific to the tablet experience the page needs to load and render
properly otherwise you’re turning away your potential customers.
Properly
rendered
tablet site
example.
Figure: Office Depot Tablet Render

Poorly
rendered
tablet site
example.
Figure: Dick’s Sporting Goods Tablet Render
AUDIT RESULTS: 43 of 50 retailers had a site that rendered properly on a tablet.

#2 VIEWPORT
When viewport is configured correctly, a website’s page width will not change on different
devices. Here are some examples of good and bad viewports on a tablet:
Figure: Academy Sports Viewport Figure: KAY Viewport
Good Bad
AUDIT RESULTS
37 of the 50 companies had a properly configured vertical viewport on tablet.

#3 FONT SIZE LEGIBILITY
Note how small the font is in the image below. Without a magnifying glass or pinching and
zooming, it’s impossible to see.
Figure: Burlington Coat Factory Tablet Font
AUDIT RESULTS: Only 28 of the 50 Top Retailers used font sizes that were legible on tablet.

PRODUCT LISTING PAGE
Except for site search results, the product listing page is where most visitors will be able to see
their options, compare them, and decide whether to take the next step. Getting this part right is
the equivalent of having a properly merchandised department within a store.
Figure: Product Listing Page Examples
#1 SORT FUNCTION - BEST SELLERS
Of course, this isn’t the only valid default setting. In our experience with e-commerce, we
typically find it tends to work the best for many retailers simply because (whether humans admit
it or not) we like to follow the crowd when it comes to the latest trends.
Figure: Michael’s Best Seller Filter

AUDIT RESULTS
15 of 50 retailers had the sort setting defaulted to Best Sellers.
Other popular sorting formats we’ve seen work well are “Highest Rating” (you must have
a robust review program for that to work), “Relevance,” and “Best Match.” It is smart for
retailers to include other options like “Name” and “Price” as dropdown options, but we do not
recommend making those the default option.
There are a few options we do NOT recommend:
• “Featured” - Think about it, what does this mean to the consumer? Also, does the “Featured”
aspect get updated?
• “Newest” - While this one isn’t necessarily bad (especially in clothing), a retailer needs to
exercise caution. Just because something is “New” does not automatically mean it should get
placement above something that is a proven seller.
• “Price: Low to High” – Show the customer low-priced items and you’ll sell low priced items.
Figure: Michael’s Best Seller Filter

#2 STRONG FILTERS
On large catalog sites, it can be argued that filters may be more important than search. The
most successful e-commerce sites allow their customers to filter 4,000 products down to 4
relevant choices based on individual inputs.
The smartest e-commerce site managers pay close attention to the data they can glean from
this filtering. It’s clearly a direct reflection of consumer demand and the subsequent conversion
rate is a scorecard of how effectively that demand is met.
Figure: Strong Filter Example
AUDIT RESULTS
43
ACCORDING LY,
out of 50 Retailers audited had strong
filtering options.

#3 SIDE BY SIDE COMPARISONS
When consumers are faced with an overwhelming volume of complex choices, they need
every tool at their disposal to help them decide what product is best for them. This is especially
important in the purchasing of big ticket items where technology is involved (cameras,
computers, vehicles, power tools, etc.), but also useful with clothing, apparel, and home
furnishings.
For a retailer looking to improve customer experience and ultimately close more sales, side by
side comparisons is a feature that should be strongly considered.
Figure: Comparison Buttons Example

This is what happens after you click “compare”:
Figure: Comparison Expanded Example
AUDIT RESULTS
Surprisingly (and also disappointing), only 16 of 50 top retailers offered side by side
comparison capabilities.

#4 SAVE, FAVORITE, LOVE
By allowing customers to quickly hit save, favorite, or love on a clothing item, you quickly glean
valuable information and the customer is easily able to come back to something of interest.
Figure: Barnes & Noble Save, Favorite, Love Buttons
Figure: Target Save, Favorite, Love Button

AUDIT RESULTS: 18 of the 50 companies’ sites had the ability to save, favorite, or love
items on their product listing pages.
PRODUCT DISPLAY PAGE (AKA PDP)

#1 ITEM AVAILABILITY
This is one of the most critical and underrated elements of e-commerce simply because it shows
customers if the item they want is in stock and ready to be picked up or shipped. Decisions
aren’t always made on price. Often, it’s about convenience and speed of delivery. Here is one
example of that below:
Figure: Walgreens Product Availability
AUDIT RESULTS
22 of the 50 companies had item availability clearly displayed.

#2 BACK-ORDER
This happens when companies have a backorder setting that allows one to buy a product when
it is out of stock and displays the date they will receive it. Within the study, we found that this
was not common among the 50 retailers.
Figure: Dollar Tree Back Order Option
AUDIT RESULTS
1
U N FO RT U NATE LY, ONLY
out of 50 retailers provided a backorder
option. This company was Dollar Tree.

#3 “SHIPS WITHIN XX DAYS” OR “GET BY XX DATE”
Product availability and delivery time are both critical pieces of information that determine
whether a customer moves forward. Apple does a great job of this.
Figure: Apple Ship by Date
Getting this part right is all about logistics, integrations, and the e-commerce technology
platform’s capabilities. Sadly, most of the 50 retailers audited for this study did not have the
level of sophistication needed to achieve and maintain this critical leg up.
Below is one example. Note how the system is sophisticated enough to let the shopper know
that there are only two items left. Where it falls short is when it stops with “In Stock. Ready to
ship.”

This falls short
because it
doesn’t commit
to a delivery
timeframe. It
really doesn’t
even commit
to a shipping
timeframe – just
that it’s “ready to
ship.”
Figure: No Delivery Time Frame Example
Another example below sets the expectation for shipping (but not delivery). However, if a
customer is in a rush or needs to be assured of a delivery date, this is not the place to look.
Figure: Shipping Expectation Example

Yes No Not Applicable
AUDIT RESULTS: 29 of 50 retailers communicated shipping timeframes on their product
display pages.
#4 REVIEWS
To pass, the reviews must be present AND prominent. If the site didn’t have reviews, it was
counted as a “no.”
Figure: Sears Main Product Item with Reviews

Figure: Sears Ratings and Reviews
AUDIT RESULTS
44 of the 50 companies had product reviews that were easy to find.
#5 QUESTIONS & ANSWER (Q & A)
We’ve long argued that a well-executed Q & A is just as important as reviews. This is especially
true for products that have any layer of complexity to them (assembly, installation, multiple
purposes, etc.).

Figure: Q&A Example with Response
Home Depot is a prime example of a strong Q & A program that ultimately serves three
purposes:
1) It adds value to the potential customer exploring options.
2) The retailer gets to learn what questions, concerns, issues, and hesitations other customers
have.
3) It provides a great means for purchasers to “stay engaged” after the purchase.

Figure: Home Depot Q&A
AUDIT RESULTS
Sadly, only 20 out of 50 retailers audited have any sort of Q & A present for the buying
experience. On the plus side, this presents an opportunity to improve the customer experience
and gain some real e-commerce traction. In addition, it stands to reason that it would also
positively affect sales at the brick and mortar level since presumably many customers are
researching online before walking into a store.
No
Q&A Present?
Yes
0 15 30
Q&A Present?
#6 CONCISE, BENEFIT-DRIVEN STATEMENTS
A customer always wants to know how your product will benefit them. The easiest and quickest
way to display benefits is with bullet points. Although this tactic is very successful, only some
of the companies were applying it. Here is an example of bullets being used in BJ’s Wholesale
product copy.

Figure: BJ’s Wholesale Product Features in Bullet Points
AUDIT RESULTS
27 out of 50 companies used bullet points to

highlight benefits.
#7 MULTIPLE PRODUCT VIEWS
Selling a product via a two-dimensional medium has one very distinct and inherent
disadvantage:
There is no physical interaction. You cannot pick it up to examine, you cannot “feel the
quality,” and you cannot appreciate the “full experience.”
Given these limitations, it’s critical that retailers provide images that show as many relevant
angles as possible.

Figure: Kohl’s Multiple Images
Foot Locker takes it one step further and now offers on some products a 360-degree view.
Figure: Foot Locker 360 Degree View

AUDIT RESULTS
39
out of 50 retailers provided
multiple views of their
products.
#8 COLOR OPTIONS
On the surface, the success criteria for this would seem obvious, but there are two components
required to gain a “yes” for this part of the audit:
i. The product detail page must clearly show all available options.
ii. When clicking on the option, the product detail image must reflect what the shopper selected.
Note how
the color box
selected reflects
on the image the
shopper sees.
Figure: Color Options for Kayak Example

Figure: Kohl’s Color Options for Heel
This functionality isn’t relevant for all products (white socks really don’t require options).
AUDIT RESULTS
23 out of the 50 retailers audited had the functionality to show various colors on their site.
#9 PROMINENT “ITEMS ADDED” NOTICE
This notice is important because it ensures that the customer is knowledgeable of what is in
their cart. Also, providing this notice will avoid any accidental add-ons to the cart.
Figure: Ace Hardware Item’s Added Notification
AUDIT RESULT: 43 out of the 50 companies had a prominent “Items Added” notice.

#10 RELEVANT CROSS SELLS
A strong cross-sell program can mean the difference between an e-commerce website that
performs extremely well vs. one where mediocracy is a win. They provide other product or
service options that relate to what is being viewed or purchased. A common example is peanut
butter to jelly. Although this can be vital to increasing sales, only about half of the companies
had consistently relevant cross-sells. Nordstrom is one of those that typically does a great job of
cross-selling. Below is an example of the main product and its cross-sell items:
Figure: Nordstrom Main Item
Main Product

Figure: Nordstrom Cross-Sells
Cross-Sells
Cross-selling can go wrong with incorrect linkage. A prime example of incorrect cross-selling
occurred on Burlington Coat Factory’s website.
Figure: Burlington Coat Factory Main Item
Main Product
Figure: Burlington Coat Factory Cross-Sells
Cross-Sells

In this example, the customer was viewing an athletic, outdoor winter coat. The cross-sells were
for fancy, indoor occasions. This is a huge red flag that linkage is not correct on Burlington Coat
Factory’s website.
AUDIT RESULT: 27 of the 50 companies had consistently relevant cross-sells while on

product display pages.
#11 CUSTOMERS ALSO VIEWED SECTION

A “Customers Also Viewed” section is another tool to encourage sales and help the visitor find
relevant suggestions based on their interests. Unlike cross-selling, these items can be in the
same category as the on-page product and usually are similar in design. Here is an example of
the “Customer Also Viewed” functionality on Maurices.
Figure: Maurices Main Item
Figure: Maurices Others Loved & Bought Section

AUDIT RESULT: 29 of the 50 retailers had a Customers Also Viewed section. Keep in mind
that not all the 29 had correct linkage.
#12 MINIMIZING DISTRACTING LINKS
When we say links, we mean click targets that remove the visitor from the specific product
display page. Some of the current detail page efforts were shocking. Companies not only had
cluttered pages but provided links to competing brands in the same product category. Why you
ask? We may never know. Below is an example of JC Penney’s abundant linkage.
Figure: JC Penny Ads Related Function

AUDIT RESULTS
39 of the 50 retailers audited kept links to a minimum on product detail pages.
#13 FULL DETAILED SPECIFICATIONS
Products like electronics, power tools, cameras, and auto parts that have a degree of complexity
can recognize benefits from having full detailed specifications available to shoppers on the
product detailed page.
Figure: Specifications Example
Figure: Specifications Example

What’s often missed by retailers is that seemingly “simple” products should also include detailed
specifications. Below are the product specifications for a simple watch (not a Smart Watch or
fitness counter device).
Figure: Watch and Specifications Example
Not every shopper cares about a product’s specifications nor will all of them take the time to
read through it. However, when your customer is nearing a final purchase decision, the small
differentiating detail in a product specification can make the difference between getting a sale or
a page exit.
In 2018, there’s no excuse for not having the details. Product manufacturers are typically more
than happy to provide it. If they aren’t, retailers should take that into consideration when
determining what to carry and promote.
Even clothing can benefit from having detailed specifications. Think about all the considerations
that go into deciding whether to buy a shirt:
Cleaning (dry clean, machine, hand wash, separately, cold, hang dry)
Materials
Country of origin
Environmentally friendliness
Ethical manufacturing
Wrinkle care
Flammability

Hopefully by now you are a believer that a shopper should have the option to have as much
(or as little) information needed to make an educated buying decision. Don’t shove the product
specifications in the customer’s face but give them the access.
AUDIT RESULTS: 27 of the 50 retailers had detailed product specifications available to

shoppers.
#14 CUSTOMER GENERATED PICTURES
People love to feel appreciated (and show off a little bit). Content is also hard and expensive so
a great solution is to prompt your customers to share their images and stories. The technology
is readily available (and allows for moderation to ensure only appropriate media is displayed).
This trend is slowly becoming more popular but has not fully taken over.
Figure: Maurices Customer Generate Photos
AUDIT RESULTS: 14 of the 50 retailers had customer generated pictures on their website.
#15 PRODUCT VIDEO
In our experience, we’ve seen evidence that shows product videos can improve conversion
rates. They are an outlet for customers to see how the product will actually work and be used.
Makeup is a great example when it comes to product videos. Below is an example of how Ulta
used a video to inform their potential customers.

Figure: ULTA Product for Video
Figure: ULTA Product Video
AUDIT RESULTS
13
out of 50 companies used videos to
display their products. Note that not
every product had a video, the company
was included if any of their items did.

THE CART / BAG / BASKET
#1 COMMUNICATING DELIVERY TIMEFRAMES
Although this topic is in the Cart/Bag/Basket section of the audit, it can also apply to the
product listing, product detail, and checkout page. For retailers that are communicating delivery
timeframes, we found the exact location varied. From a best practices standpoint, however, the
sooner in the buying process you can make delivery times clear, the better chance you have of
getting the shopper to take that next critical step.
Figure: Walmart Shipping Times
Figure: Multiple Shipping Options

AUDIT RESULTS
Sadly, most of the retailers failed at this part of the audit. Only 22 of 50 scored a “yes.” To
be fair, this feature involves far more than just functionality on an e-commerce platform. The
back-end logistics must be in place as well as an ability for those systems to communicate with
the platform in real time. Our advice to retailers on a limited budget trying to optimize their
shopping experience is to start somewhere. If you always ship orders within 2 business days, at
least communicate that so you don’t leave shoppers guessing.
#2 “CONTINUE SHOPPING” AND “CHECKOUT” BUTTONS DIFFERENTIATION
Although this may seem small, creating an outlet for the customer to continue shopping is
generally advised. Surprisingly, we found that these two buttons were rarely differentiated and
often there was not a “Continue Shopping” button. The best way to differentiate the two is by
using separate colors to catch the eye of the consumer. Below are some examples of good
button differentiation:
Figure: Dick’s Sporting Good’s Button Differentiation

Figure: Dillard’s Button Differentiation
AUDIT RESULTS: 25 of the 50 companies used colors to differentiate their Continue

Shopping and Checkout buttons.
#3 FINAL PRICE BEFORE CHECKOUT
A company earned a “yes” in this section if their cart displayed total cost including tax and
shipping. We found that customers were often made to wait until checkout to see total price,
which is off-putting for many visitors. The more information you give your customer, the more
likely they are to purchase.
Figure: Office Depot Total Price Before Checkout

AUDIT RESULTS: 25 of the 50 companies used colors to differentiate their Continue
Shopping and Checkout buttons.
#4 GIFT OPTIONS
This setting in a shopping cart is not always prominent, but in most retail cases – it is important.
However, a few of the companies audited would not need this option (for example, Autozone –
gifting brake pads are probably rare). Providing gift options allows the customer to send directly
to the receiver (who could be a new customer) and personalizes the purchasing experience.
Target does a thorough job of explaining gift options within the shopping cart.
Figure: Target Gift Option
Although this example happened in the shopping cart, gift options can also be found other
places. The main areas we noticed gift options present were the product display page, the cart,
and checkout.

Figure: Target Gift Options
AUDIT RESULTS
22 out of the 50 retailers offered gift options. Most commonly, the gift options were found
in the shopping cart.
#5 DEALS TO PREVENT CUSTOMERS FROM LEAVING
Deal-specific pages are not always common, but they often encourage a purchase. A great
example of this was found in JC Penney’s shopping cart:

Figure: JCPenny Deals-Specific Cart
The time limit placed above the cart is constant reminder for the customer to purchase as soon as
possible.
AUDIT RESULTS: Only 7 of the 50 companies used deal-specific pages to encourage a sale.
#6 GLOBAL NAVIGATION SALES EVENT
In the study, we found that global navigation sales events were more common than deal-specific
pages. “Global navigation” means that the sale is promoted on every page of the site, often in the
form of a bar heading. Below are some examples.

Figure: CVS Sale’s Event
Figure: LOFT Sale’s Event
AUDIT RESULTS
18 of the 50 companies promoted a sales event globally.

CHECKOUT PROCESS
Just a quick note on checkout “domain.” If the checkout has a different domain than the main
e-commerce site (for example, a sub-domain like “checkout.domain.com”), it’s okay if the user
experience doesn’t suffer. However, this practice can throw off web analytics unless certain
steps are taken during the implementation phase (of web analytics). We have seen multiple
retailers get the implementation wrong, which pollutes the data. When we run across a retailer
who has a different domain for checkout, we automatically recommend a full web analytics
audit to ensure they have quality data.
#1 GUEST CHECKOUT FEATURE
We found that most companies often had a guest checkout feature, however, not all of them
showed a reason for creating an account. This is a huge red flag – if you provide new customers
with a guest checkout and don’t give them reason to create an account, they usually will only use
the guest checkout feature. A short and simple description about creating an account next to
the guest checkout is all you need.
Figure: Maurices Guest Checkout

When companies provided reasoning to create an account, they rarely only asked for a
username and password. Specifically, only 2 of the 50 companies only asked for username and
password for creating an account. Additional information can be captured during checkout. You
want to make it as easy as possible to create an account for a new visitor.
AUDIT RESULTS: 40 of the 50 retailers had the guest checkout option and only 11 of the 50
provided reasoning to create an account.
#2 LAYOUT OF CHECKOUT
Checkout pages take many forms. Single-page checkout and breadcrumb checkout are the most
common layouts. Single page checkout is always preferred because it takes only one step to
fill out information and submit an order. Breadcrumb checkout is a step-by-step process that
usually includes multiple “continue” buttons to advance. Below are some examples of each type
of layout.
Single-Page
Checkout
Figure: Single-Page Checkout Example

Figure: Dick’s Sporting Goods Breadcrumb Checkout
Breadcrumb Checkout
AUDIT RESULTS
6
out of 50 companies had a single-
page checkout, while 42 of them had a
breadcrumb checkout. The remaining 2
did not have an e-commerce platform
and therefore, do not apply.
SHIPPING SCREEN
In any e-commerce transaction, the available shipping options can make or break the sale. It’s
not always about having “Free” or “Low Cost” shipping. Sometimes it’s about urgency or flexible
delivery times. In any case, the most important thing a retailer can do is to understand their
consumers’ needs and offer the proper options and communication.

Figure: Foot Locker Shipping Options
AUDIT RESULTS: 31 of the 50 retailers provided clear shipping options with prices and
times for each. Only 27 of the 50 had a free shipping option.
PAYMENT SCREEN
This is where things get serious. Up to this point, there was no real commitment. A shopper
browsed, selected, added to a cart, possibly even entered an address. Committing to making a
payment makes the whole thing real. This process needs to be seamless for the customer. Some
of the items we examine include things that are very basic, but still important.
A few (but certainly not all) examples of trust symbols include the following:
Figure: Trust Seals Examples

#1 SECURITY TRUST SEALS
After researching we found that most retailers had security trust seals, but they were rarely on
the payment screen.
Figure: Trust Seal Example
AUDIT RESULTS
14
out of 50 retailers
displayed security trust
seals prominently on the
payment screen.

#2 PAYMENT OPTIONS
A smart retailer will always provide multiple payment options such as gift cards, credit cards,
and PayPal. None of the 50 companies used Apple Pay as a means of payment. Note that Apple
Pay can be used on desktop, but only on Safari (which is limiting).
Figure: Belk Multiple Payment Options
Another thing to note is that only 4 of the 50 companies offered a route back to shopping while
on the payment screen.
Figure: Belk Route to Shop in Payment Screen

When it comes time to type in credit card information, you want things to run as smoothly as
possible. The first key factor to note is that a website with a modern payment system never
needs to ask “type of card.” This is a small nitpick, but it’s a redundant step for the customer. 14
of the 50 retailers still asked for the type of card.
Want to make more sales? Simple - always be helping your customer. Believe it or not, some
customers do not know what CVV or CC security code is, so just show them. The best way to
do so is with visuals. Often a small question mark or info dot will be directly next to the CVV
question box. This usually means the website plans to show where the code is located on a card.
38 of the 50 retailers had this mastered.
Figure: True Value Card Checkout
BRICK & MORTAR STORE INTEGRATION

This is framed as a simple “yes” or “no” question and the bar is actually set pretty low. The
qualifier is simple: “Can an online shopper see if a product is available for purchase in-store AND
in stock?”

Figure: Ace Hardware Info Graphic
This section is more important than people realize. Sometimes it’s easier to have a product
shipped to the home. Other times a shopper is thinking about something in the moment and
wants to know if the product is in stock at the store that’s on their way home from work.
Figure: PetSmart Brick & Mortar
AUDIT RESULTS
41 out of the 50 retailers had their online experience integrated with the brick & mortar.

HEADSCRATCHING
MOMENTS
HEADSCRATCHING MOMENTS
When conducting this audit, our team came across more than one head scratching moment.
These were moments when we thought:
• “Not sure what’s going on…”

• “What were they thinking?”
• “This is awesome!”
1. MISGUIDED MONETIZATION OF PRODUCT DETAIL PAGES

SCENARIO
Imagine walking into retail clothing store like JC Penney or Kohl’s determined to buy a purse.
You walk to the purse section and see the tables and racks full of brands, sizes, and various
styles. Seems simple enough, right?
Now, imagine that in that very same section you see signs that inform you of deals on purses
at competitive stores in the mall (or down the street). You see signs for purses at Express, Old
Navy, and Tory Burch. Have you ever seen this in a mall? Didn’t think so. You really don’t have to
go far to see this online. This was seen at the bottom of the product detail page for a purse on
JC Penney.com:
Figure: JC Penny Related Ads Feature

This trend towards attempting to monetize product detail pages via serving ads is something we
are not a fan of. While we understand the budget that challenges marketing and e-commerce
departments, we firmly believe that pages can be better monetized by optimizing for a better
conversion rate. Plus, (granted, this is purely opinion) it looks tacky and cheapens the retailer’s
brand.
2. HOW TO KILL SALES ONLINE AND IN-STORE

SCENARIO
You’re at work and remember that you want new running shoes. Your plan is to see if they’re
available at the store on the way home, place an order, and pick them up.
For clear symptoms of why some retailers are struggling to adapt in today’s world, look no
further than this shoe retailer. Charging $7.99 for online AND in-store pickup guarantees a
horrible customer experience.
Figure: Foot Locker Delivery Options
This might make sense in a spreadsheet to an operations manager, but it sure doesn’t to your
customer. In fact, it’s a signal that you really don’t want them to order online. A shoe retailer
gets shipments of new product regularly (either from the manufacturer or the warehouse).

3. THE ULTIMATE FAILS IN A CROSS-SELL:
A) LO O K W H AT PR ODUCT I S I N THE CART
B) LO O K W H AT PR ODUCT S THEY RECOMMEND
C) E NO U G H SA I D
Figure: Bad Cross-Sell Example
Example A

Figure: Burlington Coat Factory Main Item
Figure: Burlington Coat Factory Cross-Sells
Example B

4. CHECKOUT THAT DOESN’T WORK
Yes, you read the headline correctly. One of big retailers had a broken checkout. The page
would not move past the information screen to the payment screen. This was obviously a
temporary issue that just happened to occur during our test, but there is no doubt some lost
revenue resulted.
Figure: H&M Broken Checkout

CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
We hope you enjoyed reading this study as much as we enjoyed creating it. We perform
e-commerce audits often and are passionate about making the shopping experience better
for customers. This 70 plus page study doesn’t need a long drawn out conclusion so instead
we’ll leave you with three simple thoughts:
1 Picture what is going through the mind of the customer at various points during the
shopping experience. Put yourself in their place as someone with a specific objective
and ask yourself if the experience you provide is helping or hindering.
What are you ok with the customer assuming? Do you want the customer to assume
2 the next steps to take in the purchase journey or do you think it would be better to
show them? Do you want the customer to assume this product is available and will
be delivered within their desired timeframe or is it better to reassure them? Look at
every step along the purchase path and ask yourself how clear you’re being.
How are you making it easier for the customer? Your life as the one in charge of
3 e-commerce should really boil down to making it easier for the customer to achieve
their goals. That’s it. Do this well, and everything will fall into place.
Thanks for reading!
The Team at NordicClick

ABOUT
NORDICCLICK INTERACTIVE
ABOUT NORDICCLICK INTERACTIVE
Businesses hire NordicClick Interactive for one simple reason: To help them efficiently
acquire new customers through digital channels.
We are a full service digital marketing agency located in Minneapolis, MN with a global
footprint of clients. From a high level, services include:
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Paid Media (Search, Display, Remarketing, Social)
• Web Analytics Management
• Web Development
• E-Commerce Management
• Email Management
• Pay for Performance Marketing
• Strategic Consulting & Training
For more information, please visit us online:
WEBSITE: www.nordicclick.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/nordicclick
TWITTER: www.twitter.com/nordicclick
INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/nordicclick
SPECIAL THANKS TO LUCI BESSINGER, JEFF POLLEY, JONAH NELSON,

RACHELE BURTON, KATIE KENNEDY, AND JODY WENDT.

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E-COMMERCE AUDIT

Background & Methodology 4

Benchmark Study – The Numbers 6

Pre-Checkout: Global Observations 8

Product Listing Page 25

Product Display Page 31

The Cart / Bag / Basket 52

Shipping Screen 61561

Brick and Mortar Integration 65

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 2

As with any study, we found data that:

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 3

• Amazon • Wireless carriers

• Retailers no longer in existence • Restaurants

The checklist we used covered key items over ten categories.

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 4

HOME IMPROVEMENT CLOTHING SPECIALTY

The Home Depot Target Barnes & Noble

IKEA LOFT Kay Jewelers

Lowe’s Companies Maurices GameStop

Ace Hardware Belk Apple

Bed Bath & Beyond H&M Foot Locker

Williams-Sonoma Burlington Coat ULTA

AutoZone Nordstrom CVS

True Value Co. TJMaxx Best Buy

Sherwin-Williams Macy’s Dillard’s

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 5

Figure: Google Chrome Security Example

Figure: Target Secure Site

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 7

#1 THE “INTRUSIVE POP UP”

An intrusive pop up displays immediately upon landing on an e-commerce site. It always

Figure: Barnes & Noble Intrusive Pop Up

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 8

The “Intrusive Pop Up”

Figure: Home Depot Search Bar

Figure: Ross No Search Bar

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 9

Figure: Google Site Search Suggestions

Retailers that follow a similar practice are at a considerable advantage. Providing an

Figure: Walgreens Autocomplete Search Bar

Figure: Gap No Automatic Completion Search Bar

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 10

Figure: Petco Fun Search Bar

#4 WAS / NOW FORMAT MARKDOWNS

Figure: Home Depot Was / Now Format

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 11

#5 INVENTORY NOTIFICATION ALERTS

Figure: Inventory Notification Alert Example

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 12

#6 LIVE CHAT AVAILABILITY

Figure: Dillard’s Live Chat

However, there are various types and

Figure: Michael’s Live Chat Feature

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 13

Figure: Belk Live Chat Hours

E-COMMERCE AUDIT: 50 TOP RETAILERS - A BENCHMARK STUDY 14

23 of the 50 retailers had live chat ability.