Study predicts US online retail sales to double by end of decade.

Online retail sales in the US are expected to more than double in the next six years, reaching an estimated $316 billion by 2010, a study says.

Ecommerce growth will account for 12 percent of total retail sales in 2010, which would be an increase from 7 percent in 2004, according to a report from Forrester Research, Inc.

That means a lot more consumers in the future will be turning to the Web for their shopping.

With the growing population of online shopping households, retailers will combine effective multi-channel integration and site improvements for online consumers, according to the independent research study.

"Significant behavioral changes by consumers and retailers will fuel online retail growth over the next six years," says Carrie Johnson, senior analyst at Forrester Research. 

Some of the study's projections include:

• Online retail categories will increase between 10 percent and 20 percent compound annual growth rate over the next six years.
• Hardware and garden supply stores will experience significant growth.
• Retailers will target blogs, chat rooms and message boards with ads.
• Home décor in-store pickup will increase sales.

"While consumers continue to become more comfortable buying a variety of items online, retailers will apply what they have learned in the early days of online retailing to implement site enhancements that provide a greater return on investment and a better experience for customers," Johnson says.