Press Releases
Actinic Publishes 2003 SME Ecommerce Market Report

~ 71% of sites are profitable in 2003 ~

14 April 2003 ~ Leading ecommerce software vendor, Actinic, announces the results of its third independent annual survey of the ecommerce market for small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK. Conducted by pfa Research, the report's highlights show that the high level of profitability of ecommerce sites seen in 2002 has been sustained in 2003; over half of SMEs are planning to invest in further development of their sites; in the retail sector, nearly half of businesses now use a boxed software solution in preference to custom-built design and, in fact, spending more on a bespoke site does not increase profitability. A copy of the full report is available free from www.actinic.co.uk/docs/Ecreport03.pdf

"The results of this year's survey indicate a growing maturity in the SME ecommerce sector, and companies now regard the internet as more important to their business than they did in 2002," comments Chris Barling, CEO of Actinic. "We can also see a profile emerging for what makes sites profitable. Typically, profitable sites are built using a boxed solution, and have a total cost of implementation of at least £1000."

Report Highlights

In summary, ecommerce adoption rates, future plans and attitudes remain similar to last year. Merchants are increasingly looking to web designers and IT professionals as a first source of advice, but more ecommerce site building is being done in- house. Factors influencing site profitability are starting to emerge.

Ecommerce site profitability

  • 71% of sites are profitable in 2003 - statistically identical to 72% last year.
  • Companies whose sites are profitable are focused on customer relationships and service.
  • Bespoke design does not increase profitability.
  • No site built with an investment of less than £1000 was profitable - but greater investment did not guarantee greater profit.
  • Shortage of skills is still a barrier to profitability for some.

Ecommerce adoption

  • In the retail sector, almost half of SMEs are now using a boxed software solution, either for a site they have built themselves, or as part of a complete solution they have purchased.
  • The overall rate of adoption of ecommerce among small and medium businesses has fallen somewhat, from 26% to 21%.

Future plans and intentions

  • A majority of businesses - 53% - are planning to invest in further development of their sites.
  • There has been no significant change in the percentage of businesses that do not have an ecommerce site but are planning to implement one. Those that have actively decided not to implement ecommerce have done so for purely business rather than technical reasons.

Sources of advice and construction

  • Web designers and other IT professionals have become more important as the first source of information about ecommerce, but more companies are turning to in-house expertise for the final building of the site.

Business importance of the internet

  • Companies regard the internet as more important to their business than in 2002, particularly for providing information on goods and services and for taking orders.

Methodology

The research was based on interviews with 185 companies selected at random from an independent database. The companies were spread evenly across the retail, wholesale and manufacturing sectors. All had web sites and between 1 and 249 employees. Another 214 were willing to be interviewed but did not have a web site.

The research is conducted on an annual basis by pfa Research, www.pfa-research.com to:

  • Establish adoption and intention to adopt ecommerce amongst UK SMEs
  • Monitor experiences, expectations and perceptions of UK SMEs towards trading online
  • Identify changes in the above when compared with previous years' surveys..
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