B2C Online Response Times Improved 37% In 4th Quarter According to Giga Information Group Inc.

Business/Technology Editors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 30, 2002

Giga Information Group, Inc. (OTC BB:GIGX) today released results from research on 50 top B2C retail sites showing significant improvement in email support response times in Q4 over Q3. The average time to respond to an email inquiry dropped 37% from 19 hours to 12 hours. Even more significant, the response time required for a company to rank in the top 50% of the speediest responders dropped 62% from 13 hours to 5 hours, indicating that the best are getting better while the laggards are getting worse.

According to Steve Telleen, Vice President of Giga Information Group's Web Site ScoreCard Service: "If top companies maintain this level of service, customer satisfaction with online retailers should improve dramatically and help fuel increased growth in this segment in 2002."

Online shoppers consider speed vital: 57 percent of consumers polled in a November 2001 Jupiter Media Metrix Consumer Survey said that the speed of a retailer's response to customer service e-mail inquiries would affect their decision to make future purchases from the particular Web site.

"Clearly, the bar has been raised and to be competitive, firms need to concentrate on providing accurate answers as rapidly as possible," Telleen stated.

Giga Information Group's Web Site ScoreCard Service researches this issue quarterly on a set of 50 well-known retail brand sites to provide clients with an objective measure of how they compare to the realities of the marketplace.

Based on these findings the Giga Web Site ScoreCard team recommends online retail organizations:

-- Set a goal of answering all requests in five hours or less and providing the customer with a timely warning of possible delays.

-- Identify and actively manage situations that consistently exceed five-hour response times.

-- Make use of email response management systems (ERMS) such as eGain, Kana, Firepond, or Edify to improve response times and implement self-service support options to lower the number of support requests.

These steps will drive greater customer loyalty and improve the site's business performance. Driven by increasingly fierce competition Giga expects successful online companies will continue to leverage improving technologies to drive down response times and increase the productivity of their support agents. To obtain a copy of this research please contact Christina Thirkell at [e-mail] About Giga's Web Site ScoreCard Service Giga's Web Site ScoreCard Service was announced in November 1999. Since its launch, the Web Site ScoreCard team has used its signature methodology to evaluate hundreds of Web sites for more than 60 clients in a wide range of industries in North America and the U.K. In addition, Giga has licensed distributors who use the methodology to deliver Web Site ScoreCard Services to clients in Japan, Europe and South America.

The Web Site ScoreCard is a suite of services that provide objective measures of public and intranet web site features, functions, usability, satisfaction and management. The basic services include Feature, Function and Usability Audits, Policy and Process Reviews, and Remote Usability Testing. The deliverables, provided as both documentation and interactive presentations, include detailed analysis, recommendations and examples. More information can be found at http://www.websitescorecard.com/.

About Giga Information Group

Giga Information Group is a leading global technology advisory firm that provides objective research, pragmatic advice and personalized consulting. Emphasizing close interaction between analyst and client, Giga enables companies to make better strategic decisions that maximize technology investments and achieve business results.

Founded in 1996, Giga is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. and has more than 15 offices throughout the Americas and Europe--as well as offices in Latin America, Asia/Pacific and the Middle East. For additional information, visit www.gigaweb.com.

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