Despite being more comfortable and confident to shop online than ever before, Australians are not racing to use home assistants like Google Home and Amazon’s Alexa to make their purchases, according to new research.
The survey by MyDiscountDeals.com found that 20 per cent would never trust a voice-activated home assistant to make their purchases for them despite other countries embracing the convenience of the devices.
Less than five per cent of Aussies surveyed have used one, and only 18 per cent believe that home assistants are the future.
Kevin Germain, head of international finance at MyDiscountDeals.com, said the reluctance to adopt new platforms is noteworthy, but given that Google Home and other home assistants have only just launched in Australia, he thinks we will see very different results in a year or so.
“The survey is interesting in that Australians have really embraced the online shopping experience, with almost half (48.47 per cent) admitting they enjoy the whole online shopping experience, and yet they are still cautious when it comes to new technologies like home assistants.”
The study also found that almost 60 per cent of Australians admitted they used to be nervous, but are now comfortable with providing bank details online, while 15.2 per cent admitted they are still cautious about providing these details.
Conversely, 86 per cent of us have between one and four smart internet connected devices or appliances in our homes, with only 14 per cent resisting.
“We are moving towards a much more connected and convenient lifestyle, and the rise in internet connected devices is a reflection of that, as well as our growing affinity with content streaming such as Netflix and Apple TV,” Germain said.
“Australians love a bargain and we are embracing the convenience of online shopping in new ways. I believe our trust in new technology will grow over time.
