The first strategic benchmarking study of South African banking web sites has revealed that, while Absa offers the best online functionality, FNB leads the big four in overall Internet strategy.
The study, which measures each web site against more than 40 criteria of web site structure and navigation and more than 30 content criteria, was conducted by Media Africa, the Internet and e- commerce division of Acuity, the JSE listed strategic consulting group.
The first web site benchmarking system of its kind, the Acuity Web Site Benchmark scores each of the 70 plus web site elements against a set of international best practise standards.
"It was fascinating to watch the strategic balance shift as we moved from one element to the next", says Media Africa MD Arthur Goldstuck, who led the development of the benchmarking system.
"Such an objective system allowed us to unwrap strategic weaknesses which are never apparent during basic and subjective web site assessments."
Goldstuck has been evaluating web sites since the arrival of the commercial Internet in South Africa in South Africa in 1994, but says that, until the development of the benchmarking system, most competitor analyses were a matter of one person`s opinion versus another.
"Web site evaluation was and will remain an art, but we`ve learnt how to add the science as well", he says.
The competitor analyses of the four major banking web sites showed that, against a structural and navigational benchmark, FNB was marginally ahead of Nedbank, with ABSA far behind all of its major competitors.
In the content strategy benchmark, FNB was again ahead, with Standard Bank in close second place and Nedbank bringing up a distant rear.
The tables were turned in a measure of pure online banking functionality, where Absa and Nedbank came out on top, only slightly ahead of Standard Bank, and FNB last of the four. However, all banks lagged behind an international best practise benchmark.
"Aside from providing a clear competitive measure, an exercise of this nature reveals the importance of having a comprehensive online strategy rather than focussing only on one or other strength", says Goldstuck. "Sound structure, quality content and carefully considered functionality are all equally important."
Media Africa is currently conducting a similar in depth benchmarking evaluation of South Africa`s online retail sector.
Issued by Media Africa, the Internet and e-commerce strategy division of Acuity Group Holdings.
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