Predictions of increased spending and the challenge of hiring staff to sufficiently meet demand have seen online job searches for Christmas casual begin earlier than usual this year.

National Retail Association CEO, Trevor Evans, has said consumers nationwide were on track to spend $44.5 billion in pre-Christmas projections in 2015.

“Every state and territory in Australia will enjoy an increase in spending on the same period last year, so retailers across the nation are on track for a prosperous season that should help carry most through the traditionally quieter parts of the year,” said Evans.

MD of A/NZ at jobs website, Indeed, Chris McDonald, said scaling up for the peak retail season can sometimes be challenging for both larger and small businesses.

“Small businesses struggle to find the time to attract talent and often rely on ‘help wanted’ signs in shop windows to garner interest from locals,” he said.

“Larger businesses face the challenge of hiring for multiple stores, and paying to advertise for jobs such as Christmas casual hires can be arduous to the budget, given the nature of these short-term placements.”

Indeed.com currently attracts over 180 million unique visitors every month from over 50 different countries, with 3.4 million unique visitors visiting the Australian website.

According to Indeed’s data, more businesses are searching for Christmas casual staff earlier, with search trends showing many also type in local shopping centre names within search queries.

This hyperlocal approach to job searches makes it more important for retailers to create job listings that include words such as the shopping centre name in the description and to create unique listings for each role available.

Employers can list all required roles on Indeed for free and take advantage of the traffic the website receives from millions of job seekers looking for employment.

To leverage Indeed’s free jobs postings, visit Indeed.com.au/free or call 1800 099 984.