New research shows.
There were 9.46 million Australians (46.8%) aged over 14 who purchased something online in an average four week period over the year to March 2018, according to the latest Roy Morgan research. This represents an increase of 590,000 in 12 months and an increase of 2.3 million since 2014.
Entertainment and Leisure items account for the greatest number of internet shoppers, with 4.5 million people buying something from this category in any given four weeks, followed by Fashion (2.7 million), Food and Beverages (2.4 million), Reading Material (2.2 million) and Electronics (1.8 million).
Those most likely to make purchases online still tend to be from the more technologically savvy end of the spectrum. Nearly half of all online shoppers (49.1%) fall under the umbrella of either ‘Technology Early Adopters’ or ‘Professional Technology Mainstream’, the two most digitally inclined segments of the population.
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source (Australia) 12 months ended March 2018
Technology Early Adopters are always the first to purchase and use new technologies, and tend to be well educated and high-earning. Whereas they comprise 19.4% of the overall Australian population, they account for 28.9% of all people who buy something online in an average four weeks.
Similarly, the Professional Technology Mainstream comprise just 16.1% of the population but 20.2% of all online shoppers.
Roy Morgan CEO, Michele Levine said, “The data is unequivocal, Australians can’t get enough of shopping online. In any given four-week period, more and more of us are purchasing products as diverse as entertainment, clothing, food, reading matter, health and beauty products, furniture, and electronics via the internet.
“With nearly 9.5 million Australians or 46.8% purchasing online in an average four week period and the rapid growth over recent years, this is a retail revolution. This rapid growth represents a major opportunity for the growth of Amazon when it develops its full product offering. Australian bricks and mortar retailers are under considerable pressure from overseas and local online retailers.”
The Roy Morgan Single Source survey of over 50,000 consumers conducted in the 12 months ended March 2018, including over 5,000 online shoppers.