For the first time in many years Christmas retail trading has been soft and the giants of the industry are looking to point the finger fairly and squarely at their overseas online competitors due to a lack of GST and import duties on online goods.

But online shopping is not new, why argue the point now? Times are tougher and consumers are looking to drive their dollar further, the strength in the Australian dollar versus the US has made overseas alternatives more attractive, and of course consumers are now more aware than ever of the online alternatives.

From a financial perspective I applaud this buying behavior. If consumers can save up to 50-60% by shopping online, why wouldn’t they?  

This issue opens itself to a much larger question surrounding the future of business and its playing ground. Just what will the next decade bring? In the 90’s we had Ebay and Google, and more recently brands such as Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and the Apple iphone have transformed the way people and businesses connect. Something tells me this is only scratching the surface.

In case you were unaware of the magnitude of these online networks, Goldman Sachs was recently offered to buy some private stock in Facebook. Although Goldmans have declined the offer, citing it did not fit within their funds’ risk profile, it never the less valued Facebook at a measly $50 billion!!!

Business websites are now more important than ever. In years gone by a potential new client of Hewison Private Wealth would call and request a hard copy brochure be sent in the mail. Not anymore. Our website is our brochure. It’s instant and more widely accessible. We are now focused on ‘search engine optimisation’ and ‘Google analytics’, rather than radio ads and direct marketing. If you are a business owner and do not understand these terms, I urge you to investigate.

Change is constant, embrace it and prosper in 2011 and beyond.