The Web Uncovered

Online sales are up from last year through most of the holiday season. But it’s the largest Internet retailers that have been the big winners. One reason: Customers are more satisfied with their experiences with big e-commerce companies than with smaller services.
The 40 largest online-retail Web sites achieved their highest level of customer satisfaction during the 2009 holiday season, according to a survey by ForeSee Results, an e-commerce consulting firm. These companies averaged a satisfaction score of 79 on ForeSee’s index compared with a score of 74 in both 2008 and 2007.
But a similar survey of the 110 online retailers that ForeSee works with–which range from large to small–found that overall satisfaction dropped to a 73, compared with a 75 in 2008 and a 77 in 2007. The smallest companies took the biggest hits.
“The strong are getting stronger and the rest of the pack is getting weaker,” says Larry Freed, ForeSee’s chief executive.
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Holiday Cheer Spreads for E-Commerce Giants
December 30, 2009
by Ben Worthen
Reporter, The Wall Street Journal

Marshall Mcluhan often criticized poor media placement based on the effects of the medium upon the content which was being presented. He best defined these terms by separating media into categories of “hot” and “cool.” In short:

Hot Media is media that is ready-made, in that it requires very little participation from the media consumer. Action movies are hot media, as little is left to the imagination, and it has a beginning, middle, and end.

By contrast, Cold Media, requires a certain level of participation, whether it be imagination, input, a vote. Forcing interaction between the medium and consumer, it wears away the consumers’ ability to remained detached.

Is the internet hot or cold?
Neither is the best answer, both is another possible one. While video, radio, and other inherently hot media are available, they often times can have a cool aspect such as video responses, polls, blogging, and more. It becomes paradoxically both. Facebook is detached enough that you are safe in the confines of your own home, that is completely cool in that all of its content is user generated.

The Takeaway: When creating anything online, you want it be initially hot enough to attract your audience, but cool it down quick enough that your audience response in the way you want, whether it be to buy now, read more, or tell a friend.