Target, Chemist Warehouse and Dick Smith Electronics’ were among the big winners of Tuesday’s Click Frenzy but Experian Hitwise data shows the surge in traffic was enjoyed by more than just the big names.
More niche retailers also experienced a significant rise in traffic with Supercycle website receiving more than 16,000 on Wednesday up from just 368 visits two days earlier.
“This represents a 2720% increase in total visit to the website,” Dave Audley, head of consulting and Research at Experian Marketing Services, said.
Crayons Australia recorded a 2394% increase its website and Hallensteins New Zealand received a 1938% jump.
“On each day of the sale, Target Australia’s visitation numbers were boosted by over 160,000 , while Chemist Warehouse increased their visits by nearly 120,000 and Dick Smith Electronics by over 90,000, when compared to the Monday prior to the sale start."
Target, Chemist Warehouse and Dick Smith Electronics’ were among the big winners of Tuesday’s Click Frenzy but Experian Hitwise data shows the surge in traffic was enjoyed by more than the big names.
Involved retailers also experienced an overflow effect from the event with an extra 300,000 visits to participating retailers the day after the sale concluded.
“Overall the event attracted a significant amount of traffic. There were 8.7 million visits to participating websites over the two-day period, 4.5 million visits on the Wednesday and 4.2 million on Tuesday,” Audley said.
“This represents an additional 2.7 million visits, or a 164% relative increase, compared to the combined average daily traffic of the Click Frenzy participants.”
Shoppers in New South Wales and Victoria lead the charge and accounted for the majority of traffic but Northern Territorians were less engaged.
Audley said this could be explained due to the event gaining better traction through word of mouth in the major cities.
There was a gender division with females unsurprisingly more likely to be searching in the Click Frenzy sales than men.
“However, somewhat surprisingly it was older generations who were the most keen on the online sale,” Audley added.
“Those aged 55 plus were 2-% more likely to participate in Click Frenzy, while 18 to 24 year olds were the least likely to get involved.”
While the backlash against the Click Frenzy site’s crash was quick and harsh Audley believes the traffic levels prove Australian’s are hungry for ecommerce.
“There is huge potential for retailers in the Australian market to fill this gap by providing a seamless online shopping experience.”
Ijan Kruizinga of hosting company Crucial Paradigm said the poor performance of the event site, Myer and copycat sale event David Jones is evidence of Australian retailers lackadaisical approach to ecommerce.
“This is an indictment of the slap-dash approach the big Australian retailers have typically taken to the digital economy,” Kruizinga said.
The traditional retail sector is built on seasonal events which drive spikes in sales, he added.
“Of course, bricks and mortar stores will prepare for this by hiring additional staff and other resources.
“Click Frenzy was an attempt to manufacture a similar outcome online, but one that was carried out without giving enough thought to the level of resources needed to make it a success.”