Key survey findings:
- 63 percent of micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) agree that adopting online methods helped sustain their business in the long run.
- In fact, 79 percent of businesses in Australia own a business website, and 20 percent of them use their sites for customer transactions.
- With the rising inflation per year, 76 percent of businesses agree that business costs have increased.
- Despite the economic challenges, 50 percent of these eCommerce businesses believe selling online reduces some cost pressure. In fact, 59 percent agree it drives business growth.
- 61 percent of small businesses believe Australia is a good hub for doing business.
SYDNEY, July 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — As the pandemic slows down, Australian small businesses believe going digital will help them retain their operations in the future, as revealed through a survey for International MSME Day 2022 conducted by Crazy Domains, a leading hosting and online solutions provider.
When the COVID-19 crisis shut down businesses worldwide, many Australian micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) thrived by embracing digitalization. Such as launching a website (78 percent), sending business emails (81 percent), being active on social media (56 percent) and leveraging digital marketing (36 percent).
Businesses have become more invested in getting online, spending more than $2,500 a year on online solutions, such as websites, domains, web hosting, business email, and marketing services, among others.
Business sentiments on digital transformation
A digital presence has become a top priority for Australian MSMEs. Among those that currently do not have a website, 68 percent are willing to outsource website creation to professionals, while 32 percent would do it themselves.
Among those who own a website, only 20 percent of them currently sell online, while 24 percent intend on selling online within the next 12 months. This isn’t surprising, as brand promotion and a professional image remain to be among the top reasons for building a website, along with acquiring new customers.
Meanwhile, most eCommerce businesses believe selling online plays a key role in growing their business. With the rising inflation, which is expected to hit 6 percent by end-of-year, 49 percent of small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) rely on eCommerce opportunities to help reduce cost pressures.
Most Australian businesses are still on the fence when it comes to contactless payment options and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) schemes. Only 32 percent offer online payments, while 27 percent say it’s not applicable to their business. On the other hand, only a meager 4 percent offer a BNPL service to their customers.
Outlook amidst COVID, economic, and political challenges
In retrospect, the COVID-19 crisis has impacted small businesses in different ways. On business performance, 25 percent of MSMEs believe they have performed better than they did 12 months ago. A slightly higher number of 28 percent believed they experienced worse performance, while almost half of SMBs stated their business performed the same in the past year.
While the country hopefully awaits the end of the pandemic, economic and socio-political challenges taunt businesses in its place. The rising inflation brought by an ongoing war in Ukraine has taken a toll on SMB budgets, with almost 80 percent seeing an increase in business costs.
With Australia running under a new Federal Labor government for the first time in nine years, many SMBs expect to bear the brunt with an increase in employee wages.
While only one-third of MSMEs feel positive about the country’s economy in the next 12 months, there is a glimmer of hope as 61 percent of MSMEs consider Australia a good hub for doing business.
Survey methodology
The Crazy Domains MSME survey was conducted among a total of 330 respondents, a majority of which are SMBs in the following industries: consulting/training, professional services, manufacturing, health and social services, education and retail. The survey aims to understand the current state of MSMEs within the past 12 months and their outlook amidst the global crisis.
To download a copy of the infographic, click here.
About Crazy Domains
With over 20 years of experience, Crazy Domains is a leading online solutions provider in Australia, and has grown to be a globally recognized brand across Europe, Asia, New Zealand, UK, Middle East, and the United States.
Crazy Domains offers SMBs tools and services that aim to ease their transition online, such as domains, hosting, servers, security, and online marketing. It is among the many reputable portfolio brands under Newfold Digital, a global web presence solutions provider for small to medium-sized businesses. To learn more, visit crazydomains.com.au.
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