eCommerce Guide to Selling and Shipping in Australia

Australia has contributed a lot to the eCommerce growth of the Asia-Pacific market, becoming one of the largest online markets in this area. Australia’s strong economy and infrastructure are the backbone of this growth, thanks to their population's fast increasing use of the Internet over the past decade.

That being said, there are many opportunities for global sellers to enter the Australian market.

The Growth of Online Shopping in Australia

While the growing scale of eCommerce in Australia has been steadily trending upwards in the past few decades, it's seen a boom in recent years. As Statista's eCommerce Australia statistics show, the revenue from eCommerce in 2018 is estimated at US$12,060m.

The expected growth rate is also looking positive – from 2018-2022, it is estimated to be 8.9%. This will result in an increase in the volume of revenue to US$ 16,969m by 2022.

What Australians like to buy online

In the past few years, the majority of online purchases in Australia belong to the following categories:

• Fashion and clothing
• Electronics
• Computer equipment
• Books
• Furniture
• Liquor

Online purchasing preferences in Australia

When it comes to selling online, Australians love free shipping and huge sales. Weekend sales, everyday sales, and off-hours sales also remain popular.

Just like their global counterparts, there also needs to be incentives offered to complete an online sale. In addition to free shipping, consider:

• Backorders
• Pre-orders
• Flash deals
• Holiday deals and discounts

The Best Times to Sell Online in Australia

The following time periods are when online sales peak in Australia:

• Holidays such as Easter, Christmas, Eid, Diwali, and Halloween
• International holidays like Earth Day, Mother’s Day, and International Cat Day
• Father's Day is celebrated on the first Sunday in September (rather than in June like the rest of the world), so this could be a good opportunity for sales outside the normal sales cycle
• In November, retailers around the country participate in Click Frenzy, where they offer flash sales for 24 hours only

The Shipping Landscape in Australia

Since Australia is a very remote country, the market is used to slightly longer delivery times.

While still a huge problem, 62% of Australian retailers saw a reduction in cart abandonment when the number of shipping options increased, so ensuring that you have a dynamic checkout that offers multiple shipping options can help.

Australians are also used to standard shipping (5-7 days) as it is a very common option offered by Australian retailers. Don't be shy to offer a cheap shipping option at checkout, in addition to an express option.

Offering a shipping solution that delivers on weekends or after hours could also be useful, as 75% of Australian consumers have expressed wanting this type of delivery.

Learn more about shipping to Australia.

Shipping from Australia with Easyship

If you're based in Australia and looking to start selling online, consider fulfilling your domestic and international orders with Easyship.

We work with a variety of couriers such as Toll, Fastway, Sendle, and more, allowing you to ship effortlessly within Australia or overseas. Discover more couriers.

Sign up now for your free account and start shipping in minutes!

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