Australians are finding new ways to save money and deal with the pressures of cost-of-living. A new report on retail trends in Australia found that two-thirds or 62.5% of Aussies compare in-store prices of items to online price-tags to find the best deals.
Retailers should take note, as this could be valuable information on how to deal with customers who are no longer strictly loyal to one channel. Australians are extremely concerned about the high inflation rates, with 85% expressing their worries.
A new “omnichannel retail” trend
Amazon highlighted that the research produced by GlobalData, highlighted the blurred lines of brick and mortar and the online experience. This is called “omnichannel retail” or “bricks and clicks”. This is when customers use more than one channel in a single shopping journey.
Last month Shopify also released a report on consumer behaviour. It found that close to a third of all 1,000 consumers surveyed, prioritized value for money over many other decision-making factors. It’s clear Australian consumers are conscious of their budgets and what they spend it on.
Janet Menzies is the country manager at Amazon Australia: “We’re seeing that as cost pressures hit home, Australians are increasingly responding by shopping online and offline in search of value and convenience.”
“For example, half of all Australians are browsing products online before going in-store to purchase them, while a similar percentage are looking at online reviews and comparison sites before buying in-store,” noticed Menzies.
Opportunities for retailers
There are golden opportunities for small and medium retailers to create inspiring and creative initiatives to meet customer demand. Menzies believes it is possible through omnichannel experiences every step of the way, “from personalisation to click and collect”.
As a retail giant, Amazon also benefits from the new data and retail analysis, as they “relentlessly focus on customers” and finding solutions to household pressures. They are also focusing on empowering local businesses to expand their omnichannel presence.
Retail spend increased by 47.8%
The research report by GlobalData also shows that omnichannel retail spend has increased by nearly 50% over the last five years. It projects that this trend will continue as brands invest in integrated strategies both in-store and online.
Neil Saunders MD at GlobalData said: “As we move beyond the online retail ‘spike’ from the pandemic, Australians have embraced a return to in-store shopping, and this remains the predominant channel to buy products. But in the current economic environment, online is a major driver of value across the whole retail sector, for example through price comparison and reviews.”
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Mia is a multi-award-winning journalist. She has more than 14 years of experience in mainstream media. She's covered many historic moments that happened in Africa and internationally. She has a strong focus on human interest stories, to bring her readers and viewers closer to the topics at hand.
