By Aimee Chanthadavong

E-commerce spending in Australia is expected to increase by 6 per cent year-on-year in the lead up to Christmas, with online sales predicted to reach more than double normal spending levels during online shopping peaks, according to new research from Adobe.

The Adobe Digital Index 2013 Online Shopping Forecast showed bargain hunters will be fueling the growth.

Adobe managing director for Australia and New Zealand Paul Robson said the research points to a big reason why online shopping continues to shine.

“Cost-conscious consumers are looking for bargains and see online as the best source for these. More than 76 per cent of Australian online consumers cited lower prices and good deals as the most important reason for shopping online, followed closely by the lure of free shipping at 49 per cent.

“Price topped variety, availability, and convenience. Consumers used to see big box chain stores as synonymous with lowest price, but now online is just one big box.”

Robson has also predicted online shopping will jump significantly from mid-November, especially during Click Frenzy 2013 that will be from 19-20 November 2013.

“Adobe is predicting that during Click Frenzy this year we’ll see online purchasing double its normal levels. Online shopping will also spike during Cyber Monday, which is  a marketing term used to signify the Monday following Thanksgiving in the United States,” he said.

“Adobe is predicting that the biggest online shopping day for Australia will be Green Monday, the second Monday in December, when we expect online sales to increase more than two and a half times usual levels.”

The data also shows 15 per cent of consumers will be shopping on their mobile devices, with a 10 per cent split on tablets and a 5 per cent split shopping on their smartphones.

“Our research indicates that ‘show-rooming’, the practice of price checking on a mobile phone while in store, is alive and well in Australia, and that is just the start of the part mobile devices are playing,” Robson said.

“Beyond using mobile devices to simply compare prices while in a retail store, 22 per cent of Australian online consumers report having shopped online while in a physical store. Consumers are shopping online and offline at the same time and the retailer with the best price wins.”