Is your business up to date with technology?

If you've bought commercial property for sale on the Gold Coast, then you likely know about the value of the tourist dollar in these parts. The City of Gold Coast Council has noted that there is $4billion in total visitor spending here every year, as recorded by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That's a huge amount, and getting amongst the retail leasing scene here is just one of many ways to claim your share of this.

However, times are changing and your company needs to move with them. Technological advancements have changed the way people conduct their retail business – do you feel confident about your digital competence? 

Paralysed by the digital age 

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland (CCIQ) has focused on small businesses helping other small businesses recently, with locals supporting each other through innovation and collaboration. One area where people can aid one another is their technological skills, which were found wanting in the latest CCIQ Digital Readiness Survey. 

More than half of the companies surveyed by the CCIQ were found not to have a mobile-friendly website – something that is becoming increasingly necessary in the digital age. "[W]ith mobile browsing, searching and purchasing continuing to grow rapidly, being easily accessible to mobile users is essential," the CCIQ release states. 

According to research from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), the amount of people using mobile devices for shopping more than quadrupled between December 2010 and December 2013. The number of Australians simply using a mobile commerce service increased by an astonishing 448 per cent during this period. Clearly, those interested in retail leasing on the gold Coast need to get up with the play and make sure they have a mobile-friendly site, so they can make the most of the digital revolution.

On top of this, the CCIQ research found that nearly two thirds of the businesses surveyed made less than 10 per cent of their revenue through online sales. Bricks and mortar stores remain crucially important, especially when the chance to buy commercial real estate on the Gold Coast offers so much opportunity. But revenue could be boosted further by appropriate technological advancements. 

Look forward to make the most of now

While you adapt your industrial real estate for the present, it's also important to keep a close eye on the future. One way of doing this could be to look at the work of Liam Young, a keynote speaker at an upcoming architecture event named 2970° The Boiling Point. The City of Gold Coast is supporting the event, in which Mr Young will dissect the possibilities of future development right along our coastline.

"In my lifetime, I have seen the fibro houses and low rise apartments gradually developed and turned into kitsch apartments, uber houses and high rises. The Gold Coast is a beachside town with the volume turned up to 11," he stated. 

"The future is not something that just washes over us like water; it is something we can all play a part in actively shaping and defining. It is exciting to present work to an engaged audience interested in instigating change."

It could be a window into how the Gold Coast will look tomorrow, offering you even more ideas for adapting your lease on commercial property for the coming years. From mobile points of sale to shops that existed purely online making their way into the physical realm, technology is changing the way we approach commercial property. At Ray White Surfers Paradise we've been around for a long time and plan on being for for quite some time to come – let's meet the future head on together.