With the busiest shopping period of the year in full swing, retailers have a great opportunity to increase revenue during what is often called the golden quarter – October to December. But despite increased consumer activity, new research from Dynatrace that many e-retailers do not live up to expectations when it comes to the digital user experience.

According to the study, only 15 percent of mobile e-commerce sites and 35 percent of desktop versions comply Google's guidelines for a smooth user experience, meaning that 85 percent of mobile pages and 67 percent of desktop pages fail to create a positive customer experience. This can have major consequences, especially given the enormous competition during shopping holidays like Black Friday and the holiday shopping season.

Bob Wambach, VP of Product Portfolio at Dynatrace, emphasizes the importance of creating a frictionless digital experience:

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– The figures from the study are a wake-up call for the retail industry. In a time when every click and purchase counts, optimizing the user experience is crucial. Many sites are missing basic performance requirements, which can lead to customers moving on.

Performance deficiencies lead to customer loss

Google's Core Web Vitals are an important standard for measuring user experience, SEO performance, and conversion. Dynatrace analysis of 61 global e-commerce sites shows that many sites suffer from problems with loading times and interactions, especially when it comes to metrics like Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) and Interaction to Next Paint (INP).

“Our research shows that only a small percentage of sites are ready for the increased traffic load. But with the help of AI and observability, retailers can get a complete picture of the customer journey, identify problem areas and deliver a proactive digital experience,” says Bob Wambach.

Industries that are lagging behind

The travel industry stands out as the most underperforming sector, with only 6 percent of mobile sites and 18 percent of desktop sites meeting Google’s recommendations. The tech sector is the best at meeting the requirements, but even there, only 19 percent of mobile sites and 44 percent of desktop sites make it.

Swedish Christmas sales are expected to increase by 2 percent

According to HUI Research, the Swedish Christmas retail trade is expected to reach a turnover of approximately SEK 93 billion in 2024, which represents an increase of 2 percent compared to the previous year. The upturn is attributed to a gradual improvement in household purchasing power after previous economic challengesGrocery sales are expected to increase by 6 percent, while non-durable goods sales are forecast to decrease by 1 percent.

Facts about the study

The study analyzed 61 global retail sites using Google’s Chrome User Experience (CrUX) dataset to assess their digital performance during peak traffic periods. The methodology involved evaluating each site against Google’s Core Web Vitals criteria, measuring key performance metrics such as Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), Interaction to Next Paint (INP) and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) across both mobile and desktop platforms.

By analyzing these standardized performance indicators, the researchers were able to determine the percentage of websites that met the recommended thresholds.