Companies are getting clever with their online presences and, as a result, the market is constantly evolving, it is believed.

James Roper, the chief executive of IMRG, said that e-retail will always continue to be competitive because of the convenience involved in a customer simply looking elsewhere for a product.

However, more techniques are used to keep sales and returns strong, particularly during the downturn, with the internet shopping expert highlighting how this changes the playing field for the consumer while improving the world of e-commerce as a whole.

Mr Roper said: "You can tune your site in infinite ways, very very quickly - as an example, all online retailers constantly watch their competitors and they test their sites, and when their competitors run out of a product, they put their prices up."

Despite this, the high street is fighting back, he added, noting that small businesses in IT will have to work hard to truly reach their target audience.

It follows this week's IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, which found that sales for July were up 15.7 per cent on June's figures.

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent).