News that the Federal Government will fund collection of more accurate online spending data has been welcomed by retailers.
The government has given the Australian Bureau of Statistics $2.1 million to track how much Australians spend with online retailers domestically and abroad.
Assistant Treasurer David Bradbury said the funding demonstrated the government’s commitment to ensuring that accurate data was available to industry and policy makers.
The Australian Retailers Association said the move was a positive step for the industry and necessary for the many retailers operating in the online space.
Domestic online shopping figures will be reported on a monthly basis and collected as part of the bureau’s existing retail trade survey.
An information paper is expected to be published in early 2013 to provide some preliminary survey results, while the first full data set is expected to be published in November 2013.
ARA executive director Russell Zimmerman said the association had previously called for online retail sales to be reported as a separate category within ABS retail trade figures rather than lumped in with ‘other retailing’ and was delighted government had listened and recognised the importance of the change.
“Online is now an integral and normal part of business operations for most retailers, so it’s only natural they want to benchmark themselves and gain further insight into online sales as they grow this part of their business further.
“ABS will now be able to track Australian spending data from domestic and overseas online retailers as well as ‘multi-channel’ retailers that sell online and from traditional bricks and mortar outlets.
“Whether a consumer makes a purchase in store or in the online space is becoming increasingly irrelevant, and research shows most Australians have the tools at their fingertips to research, browse and purchase products as well as engage with brands.
“Late last year ARA expressed concern that the biggest growth area for the sector was lumped into the category of ‘other retailing’, which includes many other line items ‘not elsewhere classified’ (NEC), so it’s welcome news for the industry to have access to accurate data to analyse key trends.
“We welcome Assistant Treasurer David Bradbury and the Government’s adoption of this Productivity Commission recommendation.
