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E-generation gap
Adults might hesitate to buy things online, but not younger people: Internet commerce accounts for 13% of the total amount spent by U.S. consumers age 18-24 years old, four times that of adults, according to a recent series of studies conducted by Nickelodeon Online/Harris Interactive KidPulse and MTV/Harris Interactive. People in the United States age 8-24 are spending about $164 billion a year, according to the research. Broken down by age group, annual median spending amounts to $312 for 10-12 year olds; $1,352 for the 13-15-year-old age group; $3,016 for 16-17 year-olds; $5,200 for those between age 18 and 21; and $13,156 for the 22-24-year-old group

Virtually real
Online malls abound, but few replicate the charm of the real thing. 3dshopper.net is having a shot, though. Visitors to its site can “walk” down elegant “glass-roofed corridors,” dropping in and out of stores on either side for instant links to tenants’ Web sites. The London-based company, which at press time had 105 tenants signed up for a free trial period, said it plans to add background music, a center court fountain, and even restrooms where shoppers can find advertisements for bathroom accessories. Unlike other mall sites, “this is actually a virtual shopping mall,” John Stanborough, sales coordinator, told Clicks & Bricks. Tenants at press time included Selfridges, the upscale London food store; Boots, the pharmacy chain; Debenhams, the department store; an online William Hill betting shop; and banks galore.

Anyone at home page?
More than three-quarters of e-commerce sites fail to answer their e-mail, according to a recent test by WizardMail Marketing Systems, a company that handles online advertising. WizardMail sent e-mails to 1,000 sites with questions about their products — in one case it inquired about ordering 5,000 business cards — and only 24% of the companies responded.

Secret shoppers
Online buyers can now purchase anonymously, using PrivateBuy.com. Subscribers transfer funds from their credit card to their PrivateBuy account, paying a $3.95 fee each time they do so, and are issued an account number they can use at any shopping site that accepts MasterCard. There is a whole range of products people might want to buy without disclosing their identity, from pharmaceuticals to lingerie, Paul Raden, the company’s chief marketing officer, told Clicks & Bricks. PrivateBuy, which is part of Conshohocken, Pa.-based ecount (a company that lets people store their money online), also makes money from the interest earned by customers’ stored credit; an 11% cut from any purchase made from a vendor listed on PrivateBuy’s Web page; and interchange revenue similar to that paid by merchants to credit card issuers.