Few companies and publications have taken notice of the webs most successful general merchandise retailer. When iQVC opened on the World Wide Web, 1.9.96 the potential audience base at the time was estimated at 37 million. The average number of page views is 350,000 or about 1m hits per day. The most popular time to shop is midnight but there is a big weekend business and a peak at lunchtime as well, which indicates that people are checking iQVC out from the office. The synergy between the TV and online operations are enlightening.
Lets look at the facts.
The WWW ratings company, PC Meter has cited that iQVC is the number one general retailer on the web for the seventh consecutive month. The rating system is based on consumer usage. The decision to launch an interactive service fits in with the corporate view that this is a natural direction for a company that has a great deal of interactive retail and direct marketing experience. Few companies on the Internet can tap into the extensive audience that QVC has. There is a blend between product, service and information which results in a frequent televised joint on-air and online programming anytime QVC airs or makes a mention of the iQVC URL, the servers reach capacity.