In fact only 16% of small businesses have a "high level of digital engagement".
It has been reported by Deloitte that small businesses who are highly engaged in a digital strategy are 20% more profitable than those who aren't.
- They are two times likely to grow
- They are creating jobs
- They have a bigger customer base
- They are growing in new markets
- 75% of business is from new customers
It was also reported that those in the 'High' Category:
• Have better business outcomes than those with lower engagement, with a $350,000 or 20% increase in annual revenue (based on a 1.7 million turnover)
• 63% of businesses investing in a high level of digital interaction are growing (against on 28% of business who have very low level of engagement)
Small businesses with a high digital presence also earn twice as much revenue per employee as those with low digital engagement. Median revenue per employee with low digital engagement was $87,500 against $187,500 for those with a high level of digital engagement.
The report also highlights: "in 2013 small businesses with high digital engagement are twice as likely to be thinking about hiring more staff than small business with low or medium engagement level, and are almost four times more likely to be thinking about hiring staff in the future than small businesses with low digital engagement."
Of businesses that have very low engagement, only 5% can claim that new customers interstate and overseas were the source of their revenue growth; 33% of total revenue came from up selling to existing customers.
On the flip side, 33% of revenue growth for small businesses highly engaged in digital was earned by reaching new customers within their market. 75% of these clients within their market were new customers.
There are more facts supporting the reasons small businesses need to be highly engaged in Digital, but in an effort to be concise, I will jump to the future projections.
The Report went on to highlight:
- Small businesses are at risk of falling behind. 16% of small businesses have a high level of digital engagement vs. 97% of large businesses
- Small businesses making a digital 'start' by having a website & social media presence can potentially increase the chance of the business growing by 54%.
- Businesses with an effective website were more likely to have sales in their pipeline compared to those who don't
- Small businesses using SEO & SEM are 40% more likely to be growing than those using the internet for basic functions only
- Customers now expect websites to be mobile friendly; only 35% of small businesses are considering mobile and those who aren't are projected to fall behind their peers and will find it very difficult to gain ground on them
- Small businesses need a flexible and proactive approach to their internet strategies to remain competitive.
When implementing a digital strategy it's important to understand the opportunities that exist in your industry. It's vital that you partner with a business that can identify these opportunities and build a plan that is focused on growth and maximising opportunity.
Your Strategy needs to include:
- A fully functional (easy to navigate) website that is also mobile friendly
- A solid SEO plan that fully takes into account all search variables and understand how social media, blogging, video and images can enhance your SEO results
- Email Marketing (remains the most cost effective form of marketing)
- PPC marketing (dependent on industry)
- Full social media strategy
To talk more about the digital landscape and what it means for small business and the opportunities that exists for your business, please click here, leave your details and we will contact you to discuss how we can play our role in growing your business.
To view the entire report click on this link:
https://www.deloitteaccesseconomics.com.au/uploads/File/Connected%20Small%20Business.pdf