Only nine retailers among the 500 tested for the Sitemorse Retail 500 survey, published today, achieve a score of more than eight out of 10 - the acceptable level that all retailers should aim for. In our view the vast majority of the retail industry is still failing to get to grips with the basic aspects and housekeeping elements of their web operations.

A recent survey from YouGov of 2,050 UK adults found that many people were abandoning purchases because of a failure to get the basics right. The top reason for abandoning a purchase mid-session was slow performance (one of the Sitemorse testing criteria) with 52% of people citing this as their biggest bugbear.

It beat unsatisfactory check-out/payment, which 41% cited as their top reason for leaving a website. This is clear evidence that shoppers are voting with their mouse and abandoning those retailers who fail to deliver a painless shopping experience.

Another worrying development this month was the first signs of a site that was found by Sitemorse to contain malware/phishing links. This is a concern as it suggests the retailer is not really looking after their site.

Full details of the survey can be seen on our website.