Without stores and with tough, price-based competition, standing out from the crowd is vital for Ebuyer.com in the computing and electricals market. Without question, this is something that Ebuyer achieves. With more than 70,000 high-quality own-brand and leading-brand products to its name, the retailer is one of the UK’s largest online retailers of electrical and computer products, selling everything from televisions to food processors. It was one of only two pureplays to achieve Elite status in the Merchandising Dimension, the other being fashion giant Asos.
Having started its life as a computer components retailer, and with the expertise of the founders of Wren behind it, Ebuyer knows that attention to detail is key. It says on its website that it has a simple business philosophy to “give customers and businesses what they want, when they want it”. This focus on delivering on customer needs means that effective online merchandising is crucial if the business is to stand out from its competition, and is why the retailer scored so highly in our research.
Its website has been designed to be as easy to navigate as possible, allowing customers to self-serve if they want to do so. They are able to store and view previous orders and compile a wishlist of products.
The site also includes a comprehensive review centre – designed to improve transparency of the retailer’s service, as well as offer information on which are its highest-rated products. The retailer launched a partnership with social commerce platform provider Reevoo in 2013, which sees Reevoo handle customer reviews for Ebuyer, as well as extending to the retailer’s call centre to support customer service. The capability is also used by Ebuyer’s purchasing department in order to help it choose the right products.
“By partnering with Reevoo, we are now able to provide verified reviews to our customers to assist them in the buying process,” Ebuyer’s commercial director, David Wood, told InternetRetailing.net at the time. The reviews even extend to rival retailers of Ebuyer – allowing customers to decide who to buy from – a brave move indeed and a perfect illustration of how confident Ebuyer is of its online offer.
