Almost One in Four Small Businesses is offline

A new report has found that almost a quarter of Irish small and medium-sized companies are completely offline, despite half of them acknowledging that an online presence is important for generating business awareness.

The research was conducted by the IE Domain Registry (IEDR), the company responsible for managing and maintaining Ireland's official domain name (ie). It revealed that 68% of the businesses that do not have a presence online also felt ‘no need' to have a website with 17% explaining that they saw no value in it.
 
78% of the offline companies stated that a majority of their business is achieved by word-of-mouth. Others said that they already have plenty of business and 17% said that they were happy with the current scale of their business.

One of the more interesting points discovered was that 17% expressed concerns over cyber security, 4% higher than those who said a lack of a reliable internet connection is a deterrent to them being online.

Irish customers are unhappy with the current offering of businesses online, with the research showing that 83% of Irish consumers feel that small and medium-sized companies should have at least a basic website that lists contact details, with 68% viewing a business as "outdated" if it doesn't have an online presence. A significant 71% of consumers questioned said that they are more likely to buy from a business that has a website.

Even if they are online, only 37% of companies are promoting their business that way, and the budgets are low, with an average spend of €161 per year on search engine and social media marketing. Only 30% of online SMEs have the ability to take orders and process payments online, while just 29% can accept bookings or reservations this way.
 
David Curtin, Chief Executive of IEDR commented on the study’s findings: "While it is very encouraging to see more SMEs with websites and improved confidence in their digital assets, most are failing to take advantage of the full benefits of an online presence and e-commerce,"
 
According to last year’s Virgin Media Digital Insights Report, the Irish e-commerce market is set to grow to €14billion by 2021. Curtin warned that most of this spend is predicted to go abroad which will present a challenge to businesses hoping to maintain the loyalty of Irish customers.
 
He explained: "This is a huge and ongoing loss, considering Irish consumers' willingness to buy Irish," he said.

However, his warning is offset by some positive statistics, 77% of consumers say that buying Irish is important to them, suggesting that the odds may not be entirely out of Ireland’s favour. The latest edition of the IEDR dot ie Digital Health Index, a biannual report that assesses the quality and quantity of 500 Irish businesses digital assets, shows an overall improvement in Ireland's digital health. The Index score has risen to 45.4. This is the second highest score since research began in 2014.

TaxAssist Ireland offers digital tax services with Surf Accounts and are happy to help when it comes to ensuring your business has an online presence that works for you. Call today on 045 249 000 or use our handy online form.

Date published 19 Jun 2017 | Last updated 19 Jun 2017