Ebay spills on sales

Leading online auction site Ebay has released its 2012 Online Business Index (OBI), revealing its top 2,000 sellers increased their revenue by 45 per cent last year, with almost 160 Australian businesses achieving over $1 million in sales.

The report, the third major annual survey of eBay’s top Australian retailers, also identified mobile commerce as one of the largest growth areas for retailers going forward, with 46 per cent of respondents confirming they will optimise online content for mobile.

In addition, 24 per cent said they would develop a mobile website, 21 per cent said they would develop a mobile app and 72 per cent from the top 3,000 eBay sellers said mobile commerce will play an important role in their business strategy in 2012.

Speaking at the launch event for the 2012 OBI in Sydney today,  Supré  international brand manager Catherine Taouk also revealed that sales on chain retailer’s m-commerce site have grown every month since start-up in February.
 
“Consumers now expect to be able to access their brands no matter where they are, whether it is in-store, online or via their mobiles. In the last 18 months, 15 per cent of our online transactions have come from mobile phones or tablets and we expect this trend to continue.”

However, despite the opportunities in the m-commerce space,  six out of ten (61 per cent) businesses who participated in the OBI report said 2012 will be the first year their business invests in mobile commerce.

While the majority of Ebay sellers recognise the growth potential of mobile, one out of six (17 per cent) also admitted they don’t know how they’ll invest in mobile commerce while 40 per cent said they lack the knowledge to make informed mobile investments.
 
Slow mobile internet speeds (28 per cent), unreliable coverage (24 per cent) and the high cost of mobile internet access (21 per cent) were also identified as major barriers to growing respondents’ mobile commerce business.

One-third of retailers surveyed (34 per cent) also reported that pressure from manufacturers and suppliers continues to prevent them from selling products online. International competition (60 per cent), the state of the global economy (56 per cent) and postage costs (55 per cent) were also cited as significant challenges to online business growth.

Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman added that a holistic approach to both offline and online services is necessary for retailers to fully take advantage of the shift taking place in the market.

“Good retailers are innovating towards offering a multi-channel shopping experience to their new and existing customers. The OBI is an essential indicator of the challenges in educating business owners about the incredible opportunities available in the online space,” he said.

“[However], while having a presence in the ecommerce and mobile market is a growth opportunity in itself, it’s also a necessity to ensure the shopping experience is seamless and integrated across the many channels Australians are now conducting their business.”