• by Masha Geller , September 10, 2001

Looks like the rich media movement lost the vote of Jupiter Media Metrix. The research company today released results of a study which found that U.S. consumers are more likely to revisit websites that are fast loading, customizable and more informative than those that offer rich media or content delivery to wireless handsets.

According to Jupiter, "businesses should assess the needs of their website visitors before investing in costly, high- profile development features such as non-PC transactions or rich media."

I hate to think that we work in an industry where the above common sense suggestion requires a research study, but nevertheless here are some details.

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Survey data reveal that 40% of online surfers will visit a content site (such as a news or information site) more often if its pages load faster, while only 20% would be motivated by the addition of a richer media experience. Only 15% of users would visit a content site more often if the site delivered information to non-PC devices, such as wireless handsets.

Conceivably, the same could be applied to certain aspects of online advertising.

Along with faster loading times, consumers prefer customizable layouts on content sites. Jupiter found that 36% of Web surfers would visit a content site more often if it featured a customized layout, followed by 31% who would be motivated to re-visit a content site by the addition of polling or chat capabilities.

"To make the best use of their budgets in the near term, most companies should avoid risky, glamorous Web enhancements," said Cormac Foster, an analyst at Jupiter Media Metrix. "Before beginning any site development, companies should survey their users because every site's users are different. Retail sites especially might learn that they can address their user experience issues at a low cost without having to invest in new technologies."