Visits to Shopping and Classifieds websites in Australia this year have been slower overall than in 2008. A key factor has been the fallout from the global financial crisis with consumers overall more cautious in their spending habits. As a result, we’ve noticed more last-minute shopping, with daily visits to Shopping and Classifieds websites prior to Christmas peaking later this year than in 2008:

·The peak day for Shopping and Classifieds in 2008 prior to Christmas day was 7 December 2008 (which was a Sunday), with 7.26% share of visits.

·In 2009, the day that has attracted the greatest share of visits for Shopping and Classifieds so far is 13 December 2009, also a Sunday, with 6.74% share of visits.

Another reason why visits to Shopping websites are occurring later in the season is the greater connection between online and offline shopping (See Heather Dougherty’s related post). We certainly have seen searches for ‘trading hours’ and ‘store location’ grow each Christmas period in Australia, demonstrating how shoppers use online to support their in-store purchases.

So in the 11th hour, which Bricks and Mortar Retailers are set to benefit from the last-minute shopping rush?

Apple is performing strongly, with the Apple Store and its Australian website accounting for 14.5% share of visits amongst Bricks and Mortar Retailers. It is also interesting to note the appearance of The Westfield Group amongst the top 10 websites, reinforcing our observations on the importance of online for promoting physical retail outlets.

This wraps up my retail posts for this year. You can download the full Experian Hitwise Christmas Retail series here. Wishing you all a happy festive season!

Copyright Hitwise Intelligence – Analyst Weblogs – More last-minute Christmas shopping this year