According to a report from ForSee Results, using the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customers were less satisfied with online retail this holiday season, down 1.3 percent from 2006. The report also states that the likelihood to recommend and purchase online are also down.

"Online shopping is still the bright spot for holiday retailers, but lower satisfaction coupled with slower than expected spending growth puts a little cloud over the season," said Larry Freed, president and CEO of ForeSee Results.

While not a significant drop, it is worth noting and can be taken as a sign that as more people shop online and become comfortable and familiar doing so, expectations grow. For etailers, this means that you should be taking every opportunity to meet those expectations. User comments and ratings can help spread online recommendations. Security should be a big factor - privacy policies should be prominently displayed and/or easily located and secure transactions should be highlighted. And always have your ears pricked - listening to your consumers and paying attention to trends is essential to satisfying users. If consumers want it, they expect it. And with the array of tools, many free, available to every website owner, there is hardly an excuse to not provide a user with what they want.