Men outspend women online

PS4The price tag on what men buy online – primarily electronics and video games – means they spend more than twice as much as women online, who prefer purchasing cosmetics, groceries and books, according to the 2015 Sensis e-Business Report.

Men spent an average of $6,500 online last year, which was 2.7 times as much as women, who on average spent $2,400 in the same period.

“You might not expect to see men spending more than women online, but when you look at what they are purchasing it starts to makes sense. Twice as many men as women purchased computer hardware last year for example,” said Sensis commercial director, Rob Tolliday.

The survey, which measures the online experiences of 1000 Australian small and medium businesses (SMBs) and 800 Australian consumers, found 61 per cent of males and 62 per cent of females made online purchases, with the average Australian spending $4400 for the year.

The report found men are more likely to purchase electronic equipment (39 per cent versus 21 per cent), videos, DVDs or games (28 per cent versus 21 per cent) and computer hardware (23 per cent versus 11 per cent).

Women were more likely to purchase cosmetics (21 per cent versus 6 per cent), groceries (22 per cent versus 13 per cent), books (46 per cent versus 32 per cent) and clothing, accessories or shoes (54 per cent versus 47 per cent).

“It’s interesting to see traditional stereotypes playing out in online purchases. Men are buying more video games and take-away food while women are buying more groceries and cosmetics,” said Tolliday.

The report found 51 per cent of Australian SMBs are selling online with 66 per cent of those making the majority of sales to customers in their local area.

“On average 21 per cent of consumers’ online purchases are coming from overseas, highlighting the growing problem many Australian retailers face from overseas competition. It will be interesting to see what impact the proposed GST on imported goods under $1,000 will have on this figure,” said Tolliday.

“Not only are Australian stores having to compete with local online retailers, they are now also competing heavily with overseas players such as Asos and Amazon, who are trying to undercut them.

It’s not all one-way traffic, however. The survey found that 27 per cent of Australian SMBs are now selling to overseas customers. And with a falling Australian dollar, more Australian businesses are likely to start selling their products globally.

You have 7 articles remaining. Unlock 15 free articles a month, it’s free.