New research conducted by global information services company Experian has revealed that an estimated £1.02bn worth of online shopping transactions were abandoned in 2011 by UK consumers who were frustrated by old and inefficient identity measures.
The study found that 44 per cent of UK consumers have abandoned at least one online shopping transaction in the past 12 months because of the length and complexity of certain older forms of identity verification. In some situations, this can lead to customers having to call a contact centre, submit physical documents through the post or even visit the retailer’s store or one of its branch to confirm their identity.
Whilst these are astonishing statistics, what should be more worrying for the retail industry is the revelation that one in five of these abandoned transactions were not taken to another retailer’s website; instead these frustrated consumers cancelled their shopping attempt altogether, resulting in £214m worth of lost revenue for retailers.
The research is a wake-up call to retailers who are using inefficient technology and losing online customers and sales as a direct result.