Vendors improving online experience

China's online shopping market has undergone phenomenal growth over the past five years. But what is also growing is the number of customer complaints, which has hampered the sector's development. BizChina's Zheng Junfeng tells us about how online vendors are working to improve their internet services to win over customers and their trust.

According to a survey released on Thursday, China will replace Japan as the largest online shopping market in the Asia-Pacific region in 2010. The survey, conducted by MasterCard, forecasts 480 million Chinese shoppers will be spending 1.4 trillion US dollars online by then. It adds that China has one of the lowest internet penetration rates, but the online population has an unusually high tendency -- above 70 percent -- to make online purchases.

But complaints about online shopping experiences are mounting. The China National Network Information Center says as many as 43 percent of online shoppers have expressed concerns over delivery delays, the quality of goods and after-sales service.

Zheng Junfeng, Beijign, said, "Although statistics show that a majority of internet users in China have tried out online shopping, they do not really trust this new way of buying, due to a lack of trust with online vendors. Experts say until a system of trust is built, online shopping will not take off in a big way."

Internet vendors are trying to address this issue with improved logistics. Joyo Amazon, a leading B-2-C internet vendor in China opened a new fulfillment center in Beijing on Sunday. With 40 thousand square meters of inventory space, the venture between local Joyo and the US online retailer Amazon has expanded its storage capacity to 12 million items. The company also offers free delivery and multiple payment choices for online shoppers in China.

Other online vendors have developed marketing campaigns to boost consumer confidence. Earlier this year, 132 online retailers, including Dangdang and eBay Eachnet, promised quicker responses to consumer complaints. They pledged to respond to consumer complaints within two hours during business hours and no more than 24 hours during non-business hours.