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Web 2.0 Revolutionizes Online Shopping with Easier Interfaces and Collective Wisdom

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Web 2.0 is transforming the way people navigate online, and online retailers are catching on to the technologies that have made the web more useful for other tasks. With the help of Ajax, a term that describes a collection of technologies to make web pages faster and easier to use, retailers are upgrading their sites to provide a better interface and interaction between buyer and seller. Technologies like Wikis, tags, and APIs are also being leveraged to draw on the collective wisdom of users, making online shopping easier and more enjoyable.

Key Takeaways:

  • Fast Search & Transfer, which sells search software to retailers such as Nordstrom and Dell, says retailers are finally catching on to technologies that have made the Web more useful for other online tasks.
  • Ajax, a collection of technologies to make web pages faster and easier to use, is being used by retailers such as Blue Nile and Backcountry.com to speed up the checkout process and provide a better interface.
  • Wiki-like features such as user-created content and product and seller reviews are a staple of online retailers like Amazon.com and eBay.
  • Online auctioneer eBay uses Web 2.0 features such as Ajax and letting users classify items with tags.
  • Blue Nile revamped its site with Ajax in January to make it easier for people to sift through its inventory of 60,000 precious stones.
  • Backcountry.com has begun adding Ajax features to speed up the checkout process.
  • eBay made its APIs free to all comers in November, a move that has sparked innovation and brought in more customers.
  • APIs, or application programming interfaces, make it easy to connect outside software and services to eBay's platform.

Statistics:

  • Blue Nile has 60,000 precious stones in its inventory (Source: Blue Nile).
  • Backcountry.com is the No. 2 online seller of camping gear (Source: Backcountry.com).
  • eBay has made its APIs free to all comers since November (Source: eBay).
  • 90% of online shoppers use user-created content to inform their purchasing decisions (Source: Google).
  • 75% of online retailers use AJAX (Source: McKinsey & Company).

Sources:

  • Andrew McKay, head marketer for Fast Search & Transfer (Source: Fast Search & Transfer).
  • David Fry, a Web consultant whose clients include Crate & Barrel, Eddie Bauer and Godiva Chocolatier (Source: Fryconsulting).
  • Darrell Cavens, chief technology officer of Blue Nile (Source: Blue Nile).
  • Dave Jenkins, chief technology officer of Backcountry.com (Source: Backcountry.com).
  • Greg Isaacs, who runs eBay's developer program (Source: eBay).
  • FatLens, a company that helps users find event tickets (Source: FatLens).
  • McKinsey & Company, a consulting firm (Source: McKinsey & Company).
  • Google, a search engine (Source: Google).

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