Apple, Samsung, and GoPro Demonstrate Best-in-Class Digital Competence Earning the Top Three Spots in L2's Digital IQ Index Consumer Electronics US 2017 Report

NEW YORK, Sept. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital benchmarking firm L2 Inc releases its 3rd annual L2 Digital IQ Index Consumer Electronics US 2017 Report.

The L2 report benchmarks the digital performance of 62 Consumer Electronic brands operating in the US across the Camera, Computer & Mobile, Digital Audio, Gaming, Small Electronics, and Television categories. The report identifies key digital strategies and best practices for brands to compete amidst sector-wide flat sales and evolving the shopping habits of CE consumers. The L2 Digital IQ Index methodology examines a brand's strengths and weaknesses across the four digital dimensions of Site and E-Commerce, Digital Marketing, Social, and Mobile. Index brands are classified as either Genius, Gifted, Average, Challenged, or Feeble.

"The past 12 months have introduced a mass realignment of digital sales strategies for Consumer Electronic brands," explained Grant Torres, Senior Associate at L2 Inc. "Amazon's push into the CE market and Best Buy's continued resurgence makes it imperative that brands have an effective strategy that drives consumers to both online retailers and in-store locations alike. This is particularly important for the CE consumer who demands a seamless shopping experience and access to expert knowledge throughout their entire path to purchase."

Key findings from L2's report include:

Effective E-tailer Handoff: Sixty-nine percent of Index brands link to third-party sellers and 68 percent connect potential customers to retailer brick and mortar locations from their brand sites. However, 18 percent of Index brands inject an unnecessary hiccup into the consumer journey by linking to retailer home pages rather than a specific product.

Informing the Consumer: In lieu of direct sales (13 percent of Index brands have removed e-commerce functionality from their brand sites in the past 3 years) Consumer Electronic brand sites excel at providing consumers with a wealth of information. Ninety-eight percent of tracked brands provide technical specs on product pages, 53 percent include user reviews, and 52 percent offer warranty information. However, 77 percent of brands miss an opportunity to increase engagement with consumers by failing to include user-generated content into their sites.

Amazonian Warfare: Amazon's own line of Consumer Electronics products (including the Echo and Kindle) are disproportionately well represented on the platforms Best Seller lists. Of analyzed lists, Amazon products account for 14 percent of all brands. Similarly, Amazon products consistently rank higher on such lists than other Index brands, averaging a top five spot versus the Index average of eleventh.

The report features case studies on brands including but not limited Apple, Beats, Microsoft, Made by Google, Philipps, PlayStation, and XBOX.   

To access a complete media-only copy of L2's report, contact [email protected]

About L2

L2 benchmarks the digital performance of over 2,200 brands across 12 industries globally. The L2 Digital IQ Index is the global standard for measuring digital competence. We analyze 1,250 data points to provide brands with actionable, data driven insights on their digital performance.

SOURCE L2 Inc.