As we come to the close of the business year, we can still hear the last minute Christmas shoppers pounding the pavements of Brunswick Street. I am delighted not to be one of them, I dedicated 2 lunch hours to execute my Christmas list about 3 weeks ago and from the comfort of my ergonomic chair.
Australian reports for Christmas shopping seem few and far between but I have been reading the latest news from the US and UK, The US reported today that online sales dropped in November by 4%, the first five days in December grew by 9% from last year. The US spent a whopping $846 million (AUS $1.27 million) in online shopping on Monday 1st December alone!
Tuesday 1, was the second heaviest day in online shopping history, with sales of $823 million. (AUS $1.25 million)
The 5 buys this year in the US:
- Sport & Fitness, up 35%
• Consumer Electronics, up 24%
• Apparel & Accessories, up 16%
• Toys, up 16%
• Books & Magazines, up 10%
In the UK, exporters are predicting that high street stores will be facing their worst sales in 43 years. Lunchtime on December 8th or "Mega Monday" people were spending over GPB 1 million a minute on line. (AUS $2.24 million)
Monday 15th is expected to be even larger as most retailers are still guaranteeing delivery before Christmas
So in these "tough" economic times, it still seems to be ALOT of money is still being thrown at Santa Claus. People are shopping later into the year and with successful fullfillment practices in place, shoppers can hang on for that last minute bargain.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Rachael Milne, Business Development Manager @ Simple Net.
Sources: Internet Retailing, Internet Retailer
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monday, November 10, 2008
Online Christmas shopping - The Simple Net Guide
This year take the stress out of Christmas shopping and utilise some of the best e-commerce websites on the web. Not only will your purchases be delivered straight to your door you will also find some fantastic bargains. The websites listed below have been personally tested by Simple Net staff and have all come through with flying colours on usability, product range, good prices, security and most importantly excellent delivery!
Fresh Fragrances & Cosmetics
http://www.fragrancesandcosmetics.com.au/
For her: Gwen Stefani LAMB Eau De Parfum Spray $63
For him: Calvin Klein Euphoria Men Eau De Toilette Spray $72
Ella Bleau Jewellery
http://www.ellableaujewellery.com.au/
Sugar Fashions
http://www.sugarfashions.com.au/
Snuggle Bum
http://www.snugglebum.com.au/
Fosters - Carlton Brewhouse
http://www.carltonbrewhouse.com.au/
The Body Shop
http://www.thebodyshop.com.au/
Ozito Power Tools
http://www.ozito.com.au/
Planes, Trains & Automobiles Diecast Models
http://www.planestrainsautomobiles.com.au/
Bubba Mat
http://www.softmats.com.au/
Fenwick Fine Wines
http://www.fenwickwines.com/
The Beauty Club
http://www.thebeautyclub.com.au/
Football Warehouse
http://www.footballwarehouse.com.au/
Coffee for Connoisseurs
http://www.coffeeco.com.au/
Sporty Crew
www.sportycrew.com
Fresh Fragrances & Cosmetics
http://www.fragrancesandcosmetics.com.au/
For her: Gwen Stefani LAMB Eau De Parfum Spray $63
For him: Calvin Klein Euphoria Men Eau De Toilette Spray $72
Ella Bleau Jewellery
http://www.ellableaujewellery.com.au/
Sugar Fashions
http://www.sugarfashions.com.au/
Snuggle Bum
http://www.snugglebum.com.au/
Fosters - Carlton Brewhouse
http://www.carltonbrewhouse.com.au/
The Body Shop
http://www.thebodyshop.com.au/
Ozito Power Tools
http://www.ozito.com.au/
Planes, Trains & Automobiles Diecast Models
http://www.planestrainsautomobiles.com.au/
Bubba Mat
http://www.softmats.com.au/
Fenwick Fine Wines
http://www.fenwickwines.com/
The Beauty Club
http://www.thebeautyclub.com.au/
Football Warehouse
http://www.footballwarehouse.com.au/
Coffee for Connoisseurs
http://www.coffeeco.com.au/
Sporty Crew
www.sportycrew.com
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Are Australian Retailers too late for Online?
Recent reports have indicated that online shopping and e-commerce are growth areas for companies and that Australian retailers need to start investing in their online strategies before they miss the boat.
Some experts would even say they are too late to enter the market with most consumer areas being dominated by smaller, even single operator online stores. Simple Net's founder and director Kevin Paterson disagrees;
"You can buy just about anything on the web, music, fruit, cosmetics, lingerie, flowers, a boat, you name it you can buy it and you can usually get a great deal. Also the choices are endless, a quick browse of the web and I was presented with 15 online stores that sell and deliver flowers around Melbourne."
"However I still believe that Australian retailers have an enormous opportunity to not only enter the market but to dominate the market. Australian retailers have a great opportunity to review the online shopping space and perfect it, but most of all they have a Brand and this is a very powerful commodity"
Recently The Body Shop Australia launched their new online store without any additional marketing; it has been performing very well. The Body Shop IT Manager Fernante De Rango says "Our online presence is provided to give our loyal customers the opportunity to purchase from the comfort of their own homes and also give our customers in remote locations the opportunity to purchase our goods and have it delivered to their doorstep. Our website is also a great tool to attract new customers and increase brand exposure, sales have been very strong since launching the new website."
The Body Shop Australia's online store is a great example of how powerful a brand can be, the website is ranked 4th in the Health & Beauty category according to webranking.com.au and there has been no online marketing to date (apart for the website being Search Engine Optimised), no Google Adword campaign, no listing on shopping portals etc. which is unusual as this is generally the most important post development task we do with our clients. Mr Paterson added.
"Analysis of visitors to the website and keywords used show that our brand name or specific product names are entered into Google and this is how we are generating most of our traffic and sales"
"We are in discussions with Simple Net and are reviewing our online marketing options; we see this as the next stage and believe this will take us to a whole new level of online sales" Mr De Rango said.
All Australian retailers have this opportunity, using the power of their brands to dominate the online shopping space. The next couple of years are crucial for retailers especially as big name Brands from the US & UK already have their eye on the Australian online market.
Links: http://www.simplenet.com.au/ & http://www.thebodyshop.com.au/
Some experts would even say they are too late to enter the market with most consumer areas being dominated by smaller, even single operator online stores. Simple Net's founder and director Kevin Paterson disagrees;
"You can buy just about anything on the web, music, fruit, cosmetics, lingerie, flowers, a boat, you name it you can buy it and you can usually get a great deal. Also the choices are endless, a quick browse of the web and I was presented with 15 online stores that sell and deliver flowers around Melbourne."
"However I still believe that Australian retailers have an enormous opportunity to not only enter the market but to dominate the market. Australian retailers have a great opportunity to review the online shopping space and perfect it, but most of all they have a Brand and this is a very powerful commodity"
Recently The Body Shop Australia launched their new online store without any additional marketing; it has been performing very well. The Body Shop IT Manager Fernante De Rango says "Our online presence is provided to give our loyal customers the opportunity to purchase from the comfort of their own homes and also give our customers in remote locations the opportunity to purchase our goods and have it delivered to their doorstep. Our website is also a great tool to attract new customers and increase brand exposure, sales have been very strong since launching the new website."
The Body Shop Australia's online store is a great example of how powerful a brand can be, the website is ranked 4th in the Health & Beauty category according to webranking.com.au and there has been no online marketing to date (apart for the website being Search Engine Optimised), no Google Adword campaign, no listing on shopping portals etc. which is unusual as this is generally the most important post development task we do with our clients. Mr Paterson added.
"Analysis of visitors to the website and keywords used show that our brand name or specific product names are entered into Google and this is how we are generating most of our traffic and sales"
"We are in discussions with Simple Net and are reviewing our online marketing options; we see this as the next stage and believe this will take us to a whole new level of online sales" Mr De Rango said.
All Australian retailers have this opportunity, using the power of their brands to dominate the online shopping space. The next couple of years are crucial for retailers especially as big name Brands from the US & UK already have their eye on the Australian online market.
Links: http://www.simplenet.com.au/ & http://www.thebodyshop.com.au/
Monday, October 13, 2008
Retail sales down, Online sales up
As the economy heads south and consumers slow spending at the cash register, it would seem that consumers still want to buy things. Simple Net's founder and director Kevin Paterson has reported that his client's e-stores are doing well in this difficult environment.
"Our e-commerce clients across a number of industries, in particular the cosmetics and fragrance industry, have reported to us strong sales over the past few months"
"This is not good news for the retailers as they are not just losing sales but they may be also loosing a loyal customer." Mr Paterson added; "once a customer goes through the online shopping experience and it works well, easy to check out and the goods arrive in a reasonable time, they will become very loyal to the online store."
"Consumers always want to buy no matter the state of the economy and when things are a little bit tight then they look for bargains and the web can offer this."
"I believe we have only just scratched the surface of online sales and if you look towards the booming US and UK online markets, which are more sophisticated than in Australia, you can see where our future lies"
"Our e-commerce clients across a number of industries, in particular the cosmetics and fragrance industry, have reported to us strong sales over the past few months"
"This is not good news for the retailers as they are not just losing sales but they may be also loosing a loyal customer." Mr Paterson added; "once a customer goes through the online shopping experience and it works well, easy to check out and the goods arrive in a reasonable time, they will become very loyal to the online store."
"Consumers always want to buy no matter the state of the economy and when things are a little bit tight then they look for bargains and the web can offer this."
"I believe we have only just scratched the surface of online sales and if you look towards the booming US and UK online markets, which are more sophisticated than in Australia, you can see where our future lies"
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