The latest American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI) has found that customer satisfaction with eBusiness has reached an all-time high. Overall, this satisfaction has climbed 5.5 percent to an all-time high of 79.3 on the ASCI’s 100-point scale. Since it was first included in the ACSI in 2000, customer satisfaction with this sector has increased 25.9 percent.

The University of Michigan completed the ASCI and found that there is a fundamental shift underway in the way in which people access the Internet. An increasing number of consumers are accessing online information via search engines as compared to portals. This trend is expected to continue.

Search engines are now providing a robust array of offerings, including such elements as maps, news, weather and more. These offerings make portals less attractive than they used to be as the lines continue to blur between categories. Such a shift in the way we use the Internet is changing the dynamics of customer satisfaction for eBusiness.

The overall increase can be largely contributed to the meteoric rise of Google (News - Alert) this year, although there are other contributing factors. As a whole, the increase in satisfaction is due to more favorable customer perceptions of the quality of eBusiness service providers.

One of the drivers measured for the eBusiness sector is that of quality and the University of Michigan found that it is up 6 percent from last year. The ACSI is a cause-and-effect model that links key drivers of satisfaction to satisfaction. In turn, satisfaction is a predictor of crucial business outcomes such as customer complaints and customer loyalty.

In addition, higher satisfaction drives higher loyalty, and loyalty is up almost 8 percent over last year. This measurable increase in customer loyalty will help to translate for greater advertising revenue for those dominant players.

 

While satisfaction with eBusiness is booming at 79.2, it has not yet reached the heights of satisfaction with eCommerce companies at 81.6. eBusiness however, is improving at a much faster rate and has seen bigger gains since first being measured.

 

Both online sectors measured by the ACSI still greatly outperform the overall ACSI cross-industry average (75.1 this quarter), largely owing to the superior convenience, access, and ease afforded by the Internet.

While this is promising, it does not mean that those competing in eBusiness can breathe easier. Consumer expectations will intensify, demanding greater innovations to continue to increase satisfaction.

The ASCI eBusiness sector is made up of two major industries and measures the players with the greatest market share in each industry: search engines and portals and news and information sites.

 

News and information sites have expanded over time to offer search capabilities as well as new ways of delivering information through video, podcasts and RSS feeds. In the industry however, none of the news and information sites has truly been able to set itself apart from others.

 

News sites continue to struggle with maximizing their relationships with news aggregators, search engines, and portals, which send a significant amount of traffic their way but discourage loyalty and engagement with any particular news organization’s brand.

Search engines and portals have been able to establish clear leaders, with Google emerging as the dominant player in the field. MSN and Yahoo have struggled due to extenuating circumstances – including a hostile bid for Yahoo by Microsoft.

AOL (News - Alert), the once power brand, is now to the point that is must change strategy or risk losing more ground in the industry. Ask.com still seems to be operating in the background, but shows significant promise and has returned exceptional growth in satisfaction.

The “all others” category has had the highest score of been tied for the highest score since 2003. This category typically includes websites for local or regional newspapers, as well as a few other major broadcast outlets or other news sources. This consistent dominance shows that the major players have not been able to truly distinguish themselves as leaders. 

The ASCI scores will be interesting to watch for both eBusiness and eCommerce over the next few quarters to see if eBusiness can step up to the plate, or if more time is needed to provide its value in the eyes of the consumer.