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More than 17 million Australians used online shopping websites every month in 2024, highlighting how businesses are leveraging the growing demand for convenience and digitization by moving their services and products online. It also reveals how businesses remain competitive and relevant beyond convenience. Traditional businesses that once thrived on walk-in customers, word of mouth, and physical advertising went digital.
Having digital platforms allows businesses to be more flexible and reach more consumers. The strategy hasn’t simply helped businesses survive. It’s helped them build continuity and resilience. Many familiar entertainment, retail, and service providers have gone digital. Discover why these businesses changed how they connect with consumers.
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Digital Stages and Theatres
Digital entertainment wasn’t abundant before 2020. The idea of streaming theatre productions or stage performances live from home sounded more like a backup plan. However, entertainment providers from Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane started streaming performances to engage audiences due to the lockdowns. They soon found that they could build entirely new audiences while keeping previous fans.
Theatres that once sold tickets to locals or passing tourists were suddenly getting interstate and international viewers. Comedians and concert venues adapted similarly, selling tickets for live-streamed shows that turned stages into digital experiences. Meanwhile, attendees didn’t need to find babysitters or book travel plans anymore. The digitization of entertainment blew up because of the pandemic.
Gaming Goes Online
Traditional gaming sectors have also gone digital, with players being able to enjoy online board games, puzzles, and even escape rooms. Other games have taken it to another level, welcoming virtual reality to immerse players deeply into the experience. Meanwhile, casinos have increasingly gone digital with various slots and table games.
Players now enjoy the latest Australian sites that allow them to play thousands of casino games from a reputable platform that is globally licensed by gambling bodies. While these casinos may not be licensed in Australia, they offer Aussies access to thousands of games where they can benefit from swift payouts, diverse payment methods, and exciting bonuses like sign-up rewards, free spins, and cashback offers, all from the comfort of their home without needing to travel. Ultimately, casinos turned digital to give Aussies the convenience they demand from an entertainment sector they can’t find locally online. However, other games like escape rooms went online to attract more visitors from rural areas.
Online Bookstore Communities
Various independent bookstores find creative ways to keep their identities. While the in-store experience continues to offer value unlike others, many bookstores have moved online to compete with giants like Amazon and Kindle. Stores like Better Read Than Dead and Readings developed solid digital platforms that customers use to browse recommendations, order books, and join events.
Some digital bookstores even live stream author talks and host online book clubs. The gathering enables readers to participate from anywhere, expanding the store’s reach while keeping the hobby alive and well. The digitization of bookstores has also turned casual readers into avid regulars. Meanwhile, the stores post social snippets, staff reviews, and themed lists online to give readers the familiar and expected friendly-tone.
Digital Fashion Sales
Boutique clothing stores once relied heavily on foot traffic. However, they now build their brands around social media engagement using Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. These tools have become powerhouse sales techniques that outperform the outdated window displays. Customers now watch styling videos and enjoy live-streamed try-ons.
A 2022 state of fashion technology report already showed how major fashion brands plan to invest in more technology to compete with the trending natives selling fashion through digital marketing. Fashion has always been a competitive industry, but digital transformation is happening in boutique retailers and world-renowned brands.
Some retailers in Adelaide and Perth even use weekly live streams to allow staff to answer questions, reveal new arrivals, and take live orders. These sessions add the personal touch that traditional shoppers once enjoyed.
Streaming Fitness
Online sessions were once merely an afterthought for fitness studios and trainers. Today, they’re a premium offer, whether enjoying strength training, pilates, boxing, or yoga. Trainers across Australia deliver workouts through app subscriptions, Zoom, and pre-recorded video sessions. Online memberships have exploded, and some instructors even provide one-on-one coaching sessions from remote locations. These instructors still offer custom plans and video feedback.
Others run group sessions with hundreds of fitness participants enjoying workouts from home. This strategy has worked because it helps shift workers, parents, and rural residents access workouts anywhere, anytime.
A Digital Love for Food
Many kitchens still pivoted when many restaurants shut down. These businesses thrived because they turned the pandemic into an opportunity rather than seeing it as a challenge. Today, customers can get meal kits, takeaways, cooking classes, and curated menus delivered directly to their homes. It’s also common to find Sydney and Brisbane chefs run successful delivery services beyond their normal businesses.
Gourmet meal delivery services have become a daily habit for busy Australians, with many relying on meal subscriptions to receive seasonal produce and home-cooked meals while they’re grinding a 9-to-5. Others order meal preparation kits with detailed instructions to cook the most fabulous restaurant-quality meals at home. Some packages even include wine pairings or exclusive chef walkthroughs.
Digital Services and Trades
Australians are among those using modern technology to find and buy life insurance online, while others source reliable plumbers, electricians, and even gardeners. These services weren’t associated with digital platforms that long ago, but now Aussies enjoy the convenience of digitally sourcing insurance or an electrician as soon as pipes break.
Various tradesmen and service providers allow clients to book appointments and jobs online, get quotes through a digital portal, and make payments directly through the mobile-friendly platform. Scheduling is much simpler, and customers can select slots that suit them while having the convenience of automated reminders. Some traders also post regular updates through social media to highlight pride in their jobs, customer reviews, or specials.
Clay Leger
