It may have only just arrived Down Under, but a new report warns Amazon will drive local retailers to change-up their ad spend as they “scramble” to protect their market share.
According to the report by Athena, titled How Amazon Dominates the Competitive Search Landscape, Amazon will capture between 40 and 70 per cent of online retail searches by 2023 when they are fully established in Australia.
In key verticals which Amazon are likely to scale first – electronics, fashion and apparel – the report noted there will be significant disruption and loss of market share for other retailers in online search.
In consumer electronics, Athena predicted that Amazon’s share of online search is expected to grow rapidly and capture 49 per cent of the overall market by 2023.
Based on its performance in established English-speaking markets such as the US and the UK, the report said Amazon’s brand value will result in the e-commerce giant winning up to 48 per cent of the overall clickshare on branded search terms in Australia.
Athena founder and CEO Ian O’Rourke said Amazon’s expansion to Australia will be the biggest disruption the retail market has seen in decades.
“It will ignite the retail landscape; expect budgets to be reallocated and campaigns adjusted as retailers scramble to protect their share of the market,” he said.
All eyes will be on Amazon’s newly appointed chief marketing officer for Australia, Arno Lenior, to see what strategy the retail behemoth will implement over the coming months to ramp up its presence.
