Britain’s internet businesses have defied the economic downturn with phenomenal year-on-year growth – according to the 2011 Sage Pay e-business benchmark report.
The findings, which have been revealed to Growing Business two weeks before they will be officially announced, showed an average growth in online sales of 49% in the last 12 months.
Furthermore, more than half (57%) of e-tailers were found to be using the weak pound and relative maturity of the UK’s e-commerce market to their advantage, by expanding into international territories.
Nearly a fifth of the 1,000 respondents, based in the UK and Ireland, said they now have a presence in China. However, France, Germany and Spain remain the most popular areas for business expansion.
Simon Black, managing director of Sage Pay, believes the findings show Britain is set to become a global e-commerce leader. Speaking exclusively to Growing Business, he said:
“As the UK e-commerce market matures, the margins between success and failure are becoming ever finer. This pressure to stay at the cutting edge is driving UK e-commerce to new levels of sophistication.
“Geography also plays a significant role in pushing UK e-tailers to innovate. Whereas the vastness of the US means that expanding your online business could be as simple as crossing state lines, for UK e-tailers, expansion generally means Europe. The ability to understand the idiosyncrasies of these very different markets is something that really sets UK e-tailers apart.”
By contrast, the majority of Britain’s internet businesses were yet to maximise the potential of mobile technologies. Only 5% of respondents had developed a smartphone app – with 27% believing an app would not be relevant to their e-business. However, nearly a third of respondents claimed a mobile app was in their long-term plans.
Among the principal findings of the report was a large jump in the adoption of social media tools by e-tailers. More than twice as many businesses (76%) are using Twitter to communicate with customers than in 2010 and the same percentage have their own Facebook page – a rise of 18%.
Claire Wood, co-founder of TruffleShuffle.co.uk, was one of the e-tailers polled. She told Growing Business: “The nature of social media makes it a great tool for encouraging people to share and recommend your product, to bring in new customers.
“We have around 35,000 Facebook fans and we get their input on everything from new website functionality to potential new designs and licenses. It means our customers feel more connected to our brand because they’re helping to shape it and it gives us an incredible insight into where and what we should be focusing efforts on. Who better to give you the answers than your customers?”
To download a copy of the full report, go to: www.benchmarkyourebusiness.com