New research commissioned by HUBBED has revealed the retail and eCommerce industry is exposing itself to substantial loss in online sales due to a growing divide between consumer delivery expectations and current options.

Australians’ increasing appetite for online sales saw nearly $56 billion in online retail over the last 12 months to May, which accounts for around 14.7 per cent of the nation’s total retail trade estimate.

While these figures are positive overall, research shows the industry is not maximising online sales potential, with 90 per cent of respondents saying they abandoned a cart due to high shipping costs and 64 per cent saying lack of security was a purchase deterrent.

HUBBED’s innovative Pick-Up Drop-Off (PUDO) model provides retailers, carriers and consumers with an alternative to the high-cost and environmentally unfriendly traditional home delivery model. Its proprietary technology is customer agnostic and integrates with carriers, aggregators, marketplaces and other eCommerce platforms.

HUBBED’s PUDO network enables customers to receive parcels from a designated collection point across more than 2,200 convenient locations nationally, including outlets such as local BP service stations, National Storage and independent retailers.

The research revealed that almost all consumers (91 per cent) made an online purchase within the lead-up to Christmas (79 per cent). End of financial year sales are the second most popular period for online shopping (58 per cent), followed by click frenzy (55 per cent) and Black Friday (52 per cent) sales.

Returns are also a factor given that almost three quarters (71 per cent) of shoppers say they have returned an item they have bought online.

David McLean, the Founder and CEO of HUBBED, said while these figures were generally positive, they also highlighted a missed sales opportunity.

“Consumers are demanding more convenient, secure and sustainable delivery and return choices. For retailers, the message is clear: If you want to enhance the customer experience, negate cart abandonment, and generate repeat purchases, you must provide consumers with greater choice and control,” David said.

“There are typically around eight ways consumers can pay online. But most retailers only offer two ways to deliver and return items: fast or slow. It’s time for all retailers, both big and small, to offer a more nuanced and sophisticated delivery option that exceeds customer expectations.”

HUBBED has recently received a $12 million investment from the Australian Business Growth Fund to scale up collection points to 3,000 nationwide and expand the magnitude of collections services for its customers and partners.

The breadth of HUBBED’s PUDO footprint is compelling given that 68 per cent of people stated it would be far more convenient to pick up their parcel from somewhere close to home, at a time that suits them, and 61 per cent would prefer to return a purchase via a PUDO point rather than wait for a courier (22 per cent) or drop off instore (17 per cent).

David said: “We’re committed to levelling the playing field between pure-play eCommerce sites and their bricks and mortar competitors by ensuring everyone has access to omnichannel click and collect.

“Click and collect is pivotal to the shopping experience, and it’s a choice HUBBED enables every retailer to provide to their customers.”

Signature on delivery (74 per cent) is the most popular delivery method for high-value items, followed by PUDO points and home delivery without a signature.

“Retailers are missing out on sales because consumers don’t feel they have a safe place at home for parcels to be delivered, and they aren’t making as many purchases if they can’t sign for it,” David said.

“Our PUDO network solves this pain point as it’s local, and consumers can trust their parcel will be kept securely on their behalf.

“The retail industry has evolved considerably regarding how customers can pay for their purchase. Now, we must address the other option customers have at checkout: where and how you want your shopping delivered to, and how you can return it.”

HUBBED’s consumer collections network is being utilised by key local and global carriers, including Couriers Please, DHL, eBay, FedEx, Sendle, TOLL, TNT, and UPS.

Staff absenteeism, irrespective of the reason, is one of the single biggest challenges affecting companies today. 

From the outset of the pandemic to the more recent spread of Omicron and its subvariants, businesses have experienced significant disruption from both mandated and unscheduled labour shortages: some workers are getting sick, others are being forced to quarantine or care for household members, and there are those that have simply opted to not return to the workplace. Everything from medical services, garbage collection, transport and logistics and education services to airlines has been interrupted.

Now that we are caught up in what is being referred to as the ‘third wave’, the soaring number of absent workers is adding to an already diminished workforce at an economic impact of approximately $15B per year. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), more than one in five (22 per cent) employing businesses have staff that are unavailable to work due to issues related to COVID-19, almost a third of employing businesses (31%) are having difficulty finding suitable staff and almost half of all businesses have experienced supply chain disruptions (47 per cent).

ABS Head of Industry Statistics, John Shepherd believes that the scale of the problem is not being fully captured by official figures. “Large businesses are three times as likely to report these absences (65 per cent) compared to small businesses (20 per cent),” he said.Enter your email to sign up for CNN’s “Meanwhile in China” Newsletter.

Employers with public-facing workers, like schools and emergency service providers, appear to have had particularly large portions of their labour force isolate due to the virus. Education and health service employers are reporting a 25 to 47 per cent rate of sickness absence due to Covid while organisations in the category “other services”, which includes hairdressers, funeral staff, shoe repairers and church staff, reported an 18 to 39 per cent absence rate.

Hotels have reported shutting rooms, while restaurants have restricted bookings, reduced hours of service or had to close.

Supermarkets have reduced the range of products they sell to make life easier for their suppliers. In June 2022, the industries of retail trade (68%), accommodation and food services (64%) and wholesale trade (61%) had the highest proportion of businesses experiencing supply chain disruptions. There are now fears within the supermarket sector that some stores may be forced to shut or reduce their hours due to workers being unavailable.

Covid-related absences have also compounded staff shortages at airports and airlines, and the industry is struggling to recruit staff after thousands of jobs were lost and many workers left the during the pandemic.

An anomaly is the construction industry, which operates using tens of thousands of subcontractors and self-employed staff, many of whom work outdoors and are likely to avoid reporting Covid symptoms to protect their incomes.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said employers are “doing their very best to maintain normal business operations” in the face of rising Covid infection rates and a general worsening of skills availability but warn that workforce shortages are holding back business and the economy.

This sentiment is echoed by BHP’s chief financial officer. David Lamont revealed that the largest company in Australia can’t find workers, and he says the situation is not unique to BHP.

“It is an Australia-wide problem, but it is not exclusive to Australia. And the flow-on effect is impacting everything,” said Lamont.

“In light of chronic workforce gaps, businesses have turned to existing employers to work additional hours where possible, reducing their operating capacity, or closing their doors entirely,” he said.

A disruption to staffing levels is not cheap, in any way shape, or form, as it drives up costs. While some companies/industries can simply make do with being an employee down, others cannot. Security companies need to have guards at client sites regardless of absent workers. Manufacturing companies must produce their quotas regardless of who is present or not. Patients need care, regardless of who is absent or not. More often than not, in order to deal with an absent worker without disrupting operations, employers will have to use overtime.

Studies show that co-workers are 29.5 per cent less productive when covering for absent employees. Take a long-term care facility as an example. If a caregiver is absent, other caregivers have to pick up extra patients. As you can imagine, more patients in the same amount of time likely results in poorer care provision, and a lack of time to perform other job duties outside of patient care.

In certain industries such as security or manufacturing, the effects of absenteeism on the workplace include increased accidents. If an employee is absent or even cognitively impaired due to illness, it can force underqualified employees to undertake tasks that put them at risk. Absenteeism also often leads to employees being overworked or burnt out, creating other workplace safety issues. Again, let’s examine healthcare. If a caregiver/nurse is frequently covering for a colleague, it should come as no shock that it could result in poor judgment and mistakes. Essentially, when employees are forced to deal with increased labour, it impacts the entire organisation.

And it goes without saying that profits decrease when output decreases. Companies struggling with limited staff, are likely to also struggle to maintain production/service levels. The less time a worker spends in the factory, the less output they can contribute. If this is ongoing, the output will be greatly affected.

Productivity losses means revenue losses – not just labour costs.

The effect of absenteeism is felt by individuals, teams, and the organisation as a whole. As a result, pressure is added to both productivity, profitability and safety, which often creates a vicious circle, causing more absenteeism.

Graham Gordon, CEO and Founder of Gardian and developer of the Federal Health-approved Gardian Covid screening program said there is a growing number of people being infected by Covid, and an even larger pool of people developing the symptoms of Long Covid.

“While we still have more to learn about BA.4 and BA.5 and any new variants that follow, we are acutely familiar with the multiple impacts of Covid to date and the continued need to reduce the spread of infection.

“While implementing all other reasonable control measures in a workplace, there is significant evidence that regular screening programs provide the only practicable solution for disrupting the chains of transmission and enabling companies to proactively redirect resources,” said Gordon.

Several forward-thinking Australian companies have already implemented either onsite Point of Care testing programs under the oversight of a trained healthcare professional or have their staff following a policy of repeatable and auditable at-home, self-testing using the easily downloadable Gardian Self Check app and Test Tracker management software that enables the results to be recorded and shared with the employer.

In addition to reliably monitoring SARS-CoV-2 transmission rates and severity, regular testing in conjunction with a system that enables real-time verification and reporting are key for the early identification of infectious COVID-19 cases, effectively allowing for their prompt isolation to protect other employees and the broader community.

There is no doubt that testing strategies help to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 in high-risk environments while ensuring that societies and economies can continue to function.

Cyber Attack Trends: 2022 Mid-Year Report takes a closer look at how cyber attacks trends have intensified and been elevated as state – level weapon with hacktivism flourishing in the first half of this year with key predictions around attacks in the Metaverse and Supply Chain

With the war in Ukraine  dominating the headlines in the first half of 2022, its impact on cyberspace has been dramatic in both scope and scale, as cyberattacks have become firmly entrenched as a state-level weapon,  unprecedented levels of state-sponsored attacks, the growth of hacktivism and even the recruitment of private citizens into an “IT Army.”

In the 2022 Cyber Attacks Mid-Year Report, we take a closer look at how cyber warfare has intensified to become an essential part of the preparation for and conduct of actual military conflict with fallouts for governments and enterprises all over the world, even those that are not directly involved in the conflict. We also explore a crossover between cyber warfare and state-affiliated hacktivism to disrupt the everyday lives of citizens and cause real harm to citizens, best illustrated by the attack on the entire country of Costa Rica, which crippled essential services including healthcare and inland revenue, stopping medical appointments and the collection of taxes in this new method of ‘Country Extortion’, making ransomware the number one threat in the second half.

The Cyber Attack Trends: 2022 Mid-Year Report also explores top predictions for the second half, highlighting:

• Ransomware’s fragmented ecosystem – while ransomware groups have become more structured and operate like regular businesses, with set targets to hit, we think there will be many small-medium groups going forward instead of a few large groups like the Conti group, a lesson learned as their size and power garnered too much attention, and led to its downfall.

• More diverse email infection chains – with internet macros blocked by default in Microsoft Office, more sophisticated malware families will accelerate the development of new infection chains, with different file types that are password protected to prevent detection, as sophisticated social engineering attacks increase.
• Hacktivism will continue to evolve – hacktivist groups will continue to align their attacks with the agenda of their chosen nation-state, particularly as the Russia-Ukraine war is still ongoing.
• Continued attacks on decentralised blockchain networks with expected first attacks in Metaverse – with major incidents relating to blockchain platforms, such as a vulnerability on Rarible marketplace or ApeCoin Airdrop vulnerability, we expect to see continued efforts by hackers to breach and hijack crypto assets. In addition, we believe that we will see initial attacks in the Metaverse that will exploit smart contract vulnerabilities.

Cyber’s theoretical potential for major disruption to civic society just got real in 2022, and in this report, we will address these trends and more aspects of the evolving threat landscape while providing examples and statistics of real-world events, combined with best practice recommendations for organizations to avoid becoming the next victim. 

Uniden has enhanced its outdoor security range with the new Super HD resolution App Cam Solo PRO 2K, offering a 100% wire-free, rechargeable, solar power compatible spotlight and security camera in one. Built for the outdoor environment, the compact device can be placed anywhere around the home for constant monitoring day and night, with additional smart features to make surveillance more accurate and responsive.  

The weatherproof App Cam Solo PRO 2K is designed for Australian homes and weather conditions, enabling users to capture and stream footage in high-quality 2K resolution across a 120-degree wide angle, making it possible to view and record with a wide image range in greater detail and zoom in to view objects easily. 

Adding a passive infrared sensor (PIR sensor) spotlight allows users to better see the appearance of anyone approaching the property while also acting as an effective deterrent to unwanted visitors. Combined with a built-in spotlight, adds colour to the night vision footage up to 10 metres away to ensure a high-quality image.

Smarter than regular cameras, the Uniden App Cam Solo PRO 2K features Ai Intelligent Alerts for the ability to notify the user via the SOLO App whether there is a person or vehicle approaching the property, meaning you will only get alerted when you need to be. Together with the Thermo Sense Technology body heat and movement sensor, this feature reduces the number of false alerts a security camera may trigger due to moving branches and other benign activity, ensuring residents are only notified when needed.

To minimise reliance on electricity supply and regular recharging, an optional Uniden Solar Panel can be used alongside the camera, positioned for optimal sunlight exposure, delivering up to 180 days of operating time. The solar panel recharges the App Cam while providing non-stop power during daylight hours, allowing footage to be recorded and viewed without the risk of draining the battery. It even alerts the user on battery level to prepare for charging.

Users can easily track App Cam Solo PRO 2K vision from any smartphone device for remote live viewing in 2K quality using the Uniden SOLO app globally. It also facilitates two-way communication or voice alerts that can help deliver goods to the front door. Privacy masking can black out the areas a user does not want to be recorded and prioritise where surveillance needs to be on.

Delivering optimal peace of mind with its dual backup system, the App Cam Solo PRO 2K offers the choice of storage via a purchased SD card or via the Uniden Cloud service, which offers rolling seven days of free cloud backup for the lifetime of this product. For those with higher storage requirements, upgrading to a suitable paid plan is easy.

Thanks to the wire-free over WiFi capability, both homeowners and renters can choose one or more of these cameras to monitor more of their home, from the front door to the garage, in one easy DIY-installed solution without the need for ongoing fees or subscription costs.

App Cam Solo PRO 2K Key features:

• 2K super HD resolution
• Completely 100% wire-free over WiFi
• Spotlight & Camera in One
• AI intelligent alerts and notifications
• Colour Night Vision
• Two-way talk
• Free 7 Days of Rolling Cloud Backup + Micro SD Card Backup 
• Privacy Masking 
• Thermo Sense Technology
• Compatible with Google Assistant and Alexa
• Dual Band WiFi (2.4GHz/5.8GHz)
• Rechargeable battery
• Optional Solar Panel for non-stop power with up to 180 days of operating
• Siren alert 
• Motion detection record 
• Weatherproof (IP65) 
• Two-year Australian warranty 

Uniden Guardian App Cam Solo PRO 2K RRP: $279.95

Uniden App Cam Solo+ Solar Panel (SPS-02) RRP $99.95

New research from leading parcel delivery company CouriersPlease (CP) has revealed that nearly 9 in 10 retailers (86 per cent) are prepared for continued inflation, higher interest rates and potentially lower consumer spending. They have revealed the changes they have made in the last two years to help them buffer any impacts.

The research was derived from a survey of an independent panel of 202 owners and decision-makers across Australian retailers, commissioned by CP. Three-quarters (77 per cent) of respondents were owners or decision makers of SME retailers (with up to 200 employees). The full survey results, including breakdowns across States and business sizes, can be found here: couriersplease.com.au/portals/0/inflation-impact-on-retailers-white-paper.pdf

Nine in 10 (89 per cent) respondents rated their business success as good or excellent so far this year, indicating they are in the best position they can be to buffer negative economic impacts.

CP presented respondents with a list of eight actions that a business is likely to have made in the last two years to weather a tougher economic environment. The majority (86 per cent) selected at least one change, indicating they are prepared for inflation and high interest rates. Specifically, 36 per cent revealed they had boosted their investment in eCommerce and marketing and 35 per cent gave their workforce flexibility. Nearly a third (32 per cent) expanded their product range.

Other changes retailers made were reviewing suppliers and switching or renegotiating supplier contracts (chosen by 29 per cent of respondents); introducing more efficient technologies (chosen by 23 per cent); improving customer service (23 per cent); tapping into new customer segments or markets (21 per cent); and transitioning sales online or closing bricks and mortar stores (19 per cent).

Just 4 per cent of respondents revealed their business had been too negatively impacted to make changes.

CP asked retailers what negative impacts their businesses are likely to counter this year. More than half (53 per cent) of the retailers surveyed said they expected their profits to be squeezed, while 50 per cent said they will experience lower revenue due to lower consumer spending, and 41 per cent will struggle to keep prices reasonable for their customers.

CP CEO Richard Thame says: “The results confirm the widespread impact the current environment is having on the business sector. It appears that the economic climate will have the most impact on a company’s bottom line, with profits and revenue expected to take a large hit. With the CPI currently at 5.1 per cent, and an increase on the horizon, as well as interest rates continuing to climb, retail and logistics businesses will look for efficiencies across operations and other business areas to buffer these impacts.”

Other impacts retailers identified included postponing investment into the business (chosen by 28 per cent of respondents), being unable to keep all their employees (chosen by 21 per cent), and facing challenges meeting loan and rent payments (19 per cent).

Just 10 per cent of retailers revealed their business would not be impacted at all. This very small proportion immune from the impact of the current environment was also similar across business sizes: just 8 per cent of micro businesses and 13 per cent of small to medium-sized businesses said they wouldn’t be impacted by inflation and rate rises.

Respondents were also asked to share the most important lessons they learnt over the last two years. The top responses included being more flexible and adaptable to change, including a resilience and preparedness for the unknown; focussing on customer service and loyalty to continue driving sales; and the importance of investing in an online presence. Other respondents had an unfavourable perspective on Government support and stimulus during this time and revealed their biggest learning was that they can’t always rely on such assistance during tough times.

Richard adds: “It is promising to see that a significant proportion of retailers have already made changes that will protect their businesses over the medium term. Retailers understand this year they will compete in a climate of reduced spending, and an online presence and a strong customer experience will help them maintain and grow their market share. Parcel deliveries are the only physical contact that pure e-tailers have with customers, raising the importance of the courier-retailer partnership in delivering a positive customer experience. Onboarding a courier partner with a proven record of fast, safe and flexible delivery options will become an increasingly important component in sales and customer loyalty strategies.”