Latest news:

You are currently not logged in

Log in
E-commerce

Online retailers are bullish about growth

A new report on the e-commerce industry reveals retailers are bullish about growth in 2017.

Based on a survey of over 200 e-commerce professionals worldwide, SLI Systems found 80 per cent of online retailers forecast an increase in revenue this quarter and 94 per cent are investing in growth initiatives.

The inaugural E-commerce Performance Indicators and Confidence Report shows this confidence is reflected Down Under too.

Almost all online retailers in the Australian market plan to growth their product range this quarter (92 per cent), while two thirds plan to invest in new technology (62 per cent) and expand their teams (62 per cent).

A further 31 per cent will add additional websites or brands.

“There’s definitely a mood of optimism among the NORA ecosystem,” said Paul Greenberg, CEO of the National Online Retailers Association (NORA).

“I’ve noticed a dramatic rise in online sales at established retail companies, while pureplay retailers have had very solid growth and terrific momentum,” he said, although he cautioned retailers not to let their guard down.

“We have to watch our costs. Supply chain is still a challenge. The cost of getting product to our customers is proving to be an expensive exercise for many e-retailers,” he said.

This is becoming urgent with the planned expansion of retail giants, including Amazon and Alibaba.

The report found nearly half of Australian respondents are more concerned about Amazon than they were this time last year.

Additional research findings include:

  • More than 70 per cent of respondents expect a site conversion increase this quarter, while 73 per cent expect an increase in mobile transactions, indicating consumers are increasingly comfortable making purchases from their smartphones and tablets
  • Around one third of US (28 per cent) respondents and 40 per cent of UK respondents are targeting new markets as part of their growth strategy this quarter, though only 8 per cent of Australian retailers will approach new overseas markets this quarter.
  • Analysis of more than 1.5 billion global search queries made during the last four years revealed that the majority (56 per cent) of searches were made up of only one word.
  • Further to this, the number of searches with three or more words is decreasing while the number of one-word searches is increasing.

The full report is available for free download here.

No Comments | Be the first to comment
+-

Comment Manually

No comments