SentiOne has identified the most popular e-commerce brands on the Internet in Germany
E-commerce in Germany is booming. Two out of three Germans (about 61 per cent) regularly shops online. The Bundesverband E-Commerce und Versandhandel (Federal Association of E-Commerce and Mail Order) states that sales of online trading rose by 14 billion euros in the period between April and June 2017, exceeding the first half of 2016 by 11.1 percent.
But what are the most popular brands in e-commerce? SentiOne has created a social index for the period from January to August 2017. When calculating the indicator, we took into consideration variables such as the number of positive, negative and neutral mentions as well as their intensity.
The methodology behind the Social Index
The Social Index is a project to measure the popularity and reputation of a brand on the Internet and to compare it with competitors in a sector-specific way. The results allow conclusions to be drawn about the market position, sales and the image of a brand. The goal of the Social Index project is to develop a standard for the assessment of the presence, position and reputation of brands on the Internet. When calculating the indicator, variables such as the number of positive, negative and neutral mentions as well as the intensity of the mentions are taken into account. The results of the online mentions gathered by SentiOne were used for the results of the Social Index. Although, a separate formula has been developed to create the Social Index.
The top 10 e-commerce brands in the Social Index
As expected, the online retailer Amazon is the leader with a social index of 206.64 points. Just in the first six months of 2017, Amazon was mentioned more than a million times by German Internet users. In the second place, the online marketplace eBay follows with 133.43 points. Third place goes to the American technology company Apple with 106.29 points. The remaining placements are shown in the report, which is available for free download at the end of this article.
The top brands in fashion are Zara (11.51 points), C&A (11.38 points) and About You (5.91 points). Looking at the fashion sector, the Social Index provides an interesting insight into the online purchasing behavior of German customers. Thus the verticalists, brands that offer their products both online and offline in their stores, are the digital champions in terms of the number of online mentions. The bronze medal is brought to the Internet retailer About You despite a small number of online mentions compared to Zalando.
With a share of almost one-quarter of total tone volume (2016: 24.95 per cent with 11.0 billion euros), consumer electronics is definitely significant to e-commerce in Germany. In the electronics sector, Apple is ranked first with 105.29 points, which shows the exceptional presence of this brand. Far behind are the electronics shipping chains Conrad and Saturn, which are only 1.1 points apart. Looking at gender analysis, it is almost clear that more men than women are talking about the topic. However, Conrad manages to inspire almost as many women as men for his brand (47% vs. 53%).
Contrary to the popular opinion, Germany is not only the land of poets and thinkers but also the DIY-lovers. The topic of lifestyle is a top priority for Germans. In the e-commerce, the home improvement segment is growing as well. Between 2013 and 2016, the growth rate rose by almost 15 percent. The OBI house maintenance chain reached the highest social index at 8.51 points. In the second place goes Bauhaus with 4.35 points and Hornbach with 1.99 points. Only e-commerce house Westwing reaches more women than men online (59% vs. 41%).
Using SentiOne data, it is possible to generate the relevant data for the Social Index. However, the data offer further possibilities to gain insight into the company: it is possible to get an overview of the reputation of a brand. Furthermore, an analysis of the competition can be made, the target group can be defined, or relevant influencers can be found. SentiOne also includes a trend prediction, a crisis early warning system and has the possibility to significantly increase the influence of a brand.
