eTail Uncovers Top 3 Areas for Multi-Channel Retail Spend 2011-2012

NEW YORK, NY (Jan. 13, 2012) – In its second annual retailer spending study, which was conducted during the eTail West 2011 conference in February, 2011, eTail uncovered the top areas in which retailers planned to spend budgets over the coming year. Those areas were identified as: eCommerce Platform Replacement or Enhancement (28.5% of respondents), Mobile (27.6% or respondents) and Site Search (26.7% of respondents).

The study surveyed more than 100 retail executives from companies such as Bluefly.com, Build.com and more, across verticals from apparel, sporting goods, consumer electronics, travel and hospitality, mass-market retailers, as well as specialty/niche. Participants were asked in which areas they were most and least likely to spend marketing and technology budgets in the coming three, six and 12 months consecutively. The three areas that retailers identified as the least likely to invest in over the next 12 months were: Fraud, Privacy, Prevention & Site Security (8.6% of respondents), Personalization/Recommendation Engines (6.9% of respondents) and Merchandising (6% of respondents).

Overall, retailers showed a strong interest in acquiring SEO, SEM, CSE and CRM systems. Conversely, fulfillment and back-end solutions were said to be low on the priority list in the short and long-term for about 25% of respondents. A substantial 89% of retailers surveyed reported plans to spend on social media and social engagement programs.

"Although retailers will continue spending in the hottest emerging areas such as mobile and social, our survey results also demonstrate that spending will not slow in the short and long terms for core, ROI-driving acquisition and retention programs such as search, comparison shopping and email marketing," said Lori Hawthorne, Event Director for the eTail Conference Series.

eTail will conduct its third annual Retailer Spending Outlook during its annual eTail West conference, which will take place this year from February 27 – March 1 at the JW Marriott Desert Springs in Palm Desert, CA.

About eTail
eTail is a conference series held bi-annually in the United States, as well as internationally, offering best practices and tactical strategies presented by retail innovators from every facet of the industry. It is the premier multi-channel and online retail conference dedicated to supporting the growth of the retail industry through high- level networking and extensive thought leadership.


About Worldwide Business Research
Worldwide Business Research (WBR), is the producer of the eTail conference series, and an independent research organization, devoting 100% of its resources toward executing industry-leading conferences and research.

WBR is the world's biggest large-scale conference company and part of the PLS group, one of the world's leading providers of strategic business intelligence with 16 offices worldwide. Every year over 10,000 senior executives from Fortune 1000 companies attend over 100 annual conferences – a true "Who's Who" of today's corporate world. From automotive events in Bucharest to logistics conferences in Arizona and finance summits in Hong Kong, WBR is dedicated to exceeding the needs of its customers around the world.

Media Contact:
Josephine Stueland
jstueland@wbresearch.com
646-200-7448
www.etailwest.com