Trends in Web Merchandising, Niche Sites, Micro vs Macro

[mandy]

Building a dedicated web presence to market a particular product category is a strategy retailers follow in different ways to suit their goals. While retailers like CSN and ShoppersChoice.com are building dedicated niche sites, other retailers, particularly those with strong established brands like Sears as the titles of their web sites, are creating microsites within their main e-commerce properties.

An overall trend in web merchandising, experts say, is finding the best way to match consumers with brands—or, in the case of CSN, ShoppersChoice and others, to virtually create new brands with web site addresses focused on particular products or categories—then provide a shopping experience dedicated to a niche. Thanks to the flexible capabilities of today’s e-commerce technologies, which support relatively fast rollout of completely new niche sites, or microsites based on search and navigation technology, retailers have more options than ever in developing online merchandising strategies.

“Retailers are ready for a revolution in web merchandising,” says Paul Miller, former head of direct commerce at Sears Holdings Corp.—operator of Sears.com, Kmart.com and LandsEnd.com—and now a Chicago-based independent consultant in retail e-commerce. Retailers today have more options to build broader shopping experiences within narrow niches, making it more likely shoppers will find something to buy instead of winding up in a merchandising dead-end, he adds...

full article: http://www.internetretailer.com/article.asp?id=26255