Abacus Indicator: Electronics Lead B-to-C AOV According to the Abacus Indicator from Broomfield, CO-based direct marketing services provider Abacus, the electronics category produced higher average order values (AOVs) last year than any other business-to-consumer catalog/Web category. The average order size of a consumer electronics purchase last year was $179. Home decor and furniture catalogers/Website merchants had the second largest AOV, followed by apparel, tools, health and wellness products, and sports/outdoor products. “Senior products” had the lowest AOV, at $52. 
“Although total average order size on the whole declined slightly in 2004 from $99 to $96, we witnessed an increase in purchase frequency per household of 11% last year, which helped to drive overall growth,” says Casey Carey, Abacus’s vice president of marketing. “Much of this growth can be attributed to an increase in Web-based sales. In fact, in the last four years, the average order sizes for catalog and Website transactions have converged, with Web orders surpassing call center orders for the first time.”