More than a quarter of firms in the UK are missing out on valuable online sales by keeping away from e-commerce, according to results of the latest Close Brothers Business Barometer.
The quarterly survey canvasses the opinion of SME owners across the UK and further revealed that, while the majority of respondents claim to understand the Internet’s potential for expanding their business, not even one in ten UK companies currently conduct more than half of their business online.
David Thomson, CEO of Close Brothers Invoice Finance, said:
“Research indicates that online sales are forecast to grow by 10.9% year-on-year, and expected to contribute £225 billion to the overall economy by 2016*. This figure tells us that small businesses could miss out on opportunities for strategic advantage if they don’t embrace the online marketplace as soon as possible.
“E-commerce provides a wealth of opportunities for SMEs to promote their products to a wider audience and increase the potential for exports.
“Over a fifth of UK mobile Internet users now make purchases on their smart phones** and the growth in mobile devices is reforming the way consumers shop. As increasing numbers of people now make purchases at the click of a button, a growing ‘armchair economy’ is emerging in Britain, and to add to that, shoppers now expect to be able to buy online.
“Some smaller businesses might feel they lack the technical expertise to engage in e-commerce but in actual fact, it’s now possible to manage a professional online shop at a relatively low cost.
“By failing to harness the power of the Internet, UK firms could be falling short of their full potential."
*Source: Boston Consulting Group (BCG) The $4.2 Trillion Opportunity: The Internet Economy in the G-20, March 2012
** Source: Ofcom Communications Market Report 2013 (August)
