Barclays Manipulates Online Sales?

Barclays aims to maximize conversion rates on the number of sales made online compared with the amount of visitors by analysing behaviour on and off the Barclays site, said head of online marketing and content Julian Brewer.

“It is not just what people do on our web site, it is what they arrive with,” he said.

The system analyses the IP address of a PC to find out where it is located, what site a user has come from, and what search term was entered to get to the Barclays page. It can also see what browser is being used. The data is then compared with the behaviour of previous visitors so advertisements and promotions displayed on the front page can be tailored according to what is most likely to sell. A number of high-street banks use similar systems already, but have been wary of publicity.

The concern over customer security is not unfounded. Google is also running a programme where they put a ‘desk top’ on people’s commuters, usually when they download the new Google toolbar. Online users believe that this just helps improve their online search. In fact, it is collecting a massive amount of data, as much as 10 gigabytes in a few months, according to Grace Publishing Media’s personal findings.

This leaves consumers vulnerable. There is no indication that the Barclays programme is harvesting information from PCs, but the information is being stored on databases that may not include the same security features as an online banking site.

At the least, the system installs a tracking cookie on the computer’s browser which can be used to customize that customer’s preferences. For example, if the person came from a mortgage planning site, the Barclays site should focus their home page on mortgage products and information, making it easier to sell to potential customers.

Published on September 23, 2007