Consumers Rising Expectations to Blame for Lower Satisfaction this Holiday Season

Those that had completed online purchases this past week had a customer satisfaction score of 84.8, 2% higher than the previous week.

“The good news this holiday season is consumers that are completing their purchases online are having very good experiences,” Freed said. “These scores rival some of the highest scores we see.”

Using the methodology of the University of Michigan’s American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), ForeSee Results calculates the aggregate customer satisfaction score of 35 retailers included in the benchmark. The methodology also assesses satisfaction with specific elements that influence overall satisfaction.

This week, satisfaction with the critical element of price/transaction costs rose three points from past week, after falling in the week before Cyber Monday.

“This rebounding of satisfaction with price/transaction costs is another example of the power of customer expectations. Retailers lured shoppers to their sites on Cyber Monday with promises of deals and free shipping offers that didn’t always materialize. Now that customers’ expectations are more in line with their online experiences, their satisfaction with these elements of the experience has increased,” said Freed.

The ForeSee Results Holiday Shopping Benchmark aggregates customer satisfaction data from 30+ e-retail sites. This week, the research included 46,000 responses. Weekly satisfaction data will be reported throughout the holiday season.