Meet the typical online retail customer – they’re planning to spend big this Christmas

A massive 35% of Australian households say they already shop online, and are likely to boost their online spending over the Christmas period.

A massive 35% of Australian households say they already shop online, and are likely to boost their online spending over the Christmas period.

A new AAPT survey also shows 13% of households have already bought presents online for Christmas, the survey shows, and 32% of online shoppers spend between one to four hours a day scouring the internet.

Nearly 25% of households shop online on a regular basis.

The figures show 25% of full-time workers shop online, compared to 17% of part-time workers or the unemployed. A whopping 21% of families with children under 13 have already gone online to buy Christmas gifts.

According to the survey, 40% of households earning over $70,000 shop online, compared to 15% of households earning less than $30,000. The most likely households to shop online are married couples aged 25 to 44 with children working in “white-collar” jobs.

AAPT’s head of corporate communications, Tahn Shannon, says retailers “absolutely” need to focus on the online side of their businesses in light of these figures.

“I think absolutely our research proves that. [They are] pretty compelling statistics,” she says.

“There are two distinctive markets that embrace internet shopping; busy families with both parents working either full-time or part-time, and technology-literate younger people.

“Fast broadband access, high-quality products on shopping sites and secure payment gateways has made the internet an excellent choice for people who are time-poor,” she says.

“Importantly, our findings revealed there is equal appetite from metropolitan and regional households to shop online, highlighting the need for adequate broadband infrastructure investment outside of capital cities.”

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