Majestic web upgrade rejects user content trend

The wine retailer will improve personalisation, but will avoid customer interaction

Majestic Wine is steering clear of web 2.0 tools such as forums

Majestic Wine is upgrading its web site, but steering clear of Web 2.0 and user-generated content in favour of emphasising its own expertise.

The company relaunched its web site last year with improved search and navigation. The second phase, now beginning, will include greater personalisation.

But instead of adding forums or customer recommendations, Majestic’s content will focus on its own strengths, said e-commerce director Jeremy Palmer.

“We will not try to be something we are not: we are a wine shop, not a magazine,” he said.

Majestic is bucking the trend. Many retail sites are investing in Web 2.0, even if the benefits are not yet fully clear.

“Majestic’s strategy is absolutely not the way to go,” said James Roper, chief executive of the Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG), an e-commerce industry body.

“Customer interaction has grown massively in the past year and will be absolutely central to the retail industry,” he said.