The Stage is Set For SMBs to Cash In

Story by: Cliff Boodoosingh    
Date: Wed, January 18th, 2006  (Link to Article)       

The Internet economy is the economy...you've heard that before. Market
analyst group Forrester coined it several years ago. It would appear that the SMB sector wholly embraces that philosophy as we trudge along in 2006 with our collective noses to grindstone and shoulders to the wheel. No more clichés from here on in.

Avalara surveyed 12 thousand SMBs operating in the online eCommerce world and they see, predict and are counting on a solid year of business in the eCommerce and Web services on-demand sectors.

Eighty four percent of the business owners expect business performance in 2006 to improve over 2005--the same percentage that called for 2005 to exceed 2004's results, according to Avalara's study (as seen in eMarketer.com). These SMBs also are bullish on the US economy at large with 72 percent expecting further improvements this year.

So this means that the US consumer is embracing the NET (with more zeal) as a medium to conduct business and spend accordingly.

eMarketer reports that online sales in 2005 will show a 25 percent increase over 2004's online shopping sales. Furthermore, comScore, reported that total Internet spending for the full year 2005, including travel, reached $143.2 billion, up 22 percent over the $117.2 billion spent online in 2004.

Okay, enough stats. What does this mean? Opportunity is knocking. SMBs must ensure that all marketing strategies are in place to capitalize on this expected bonanza. That means your website must be optimized for the search engines. It also means paying attention to design elements conducive to better sales such as ease of navigation, ease of checkout with your shopping cart solution and the right mix of merchandise to appeal to buyers. And don’t forget to keep your customers in the know with informative emails, opt-in newsletters or a little creative word of mouth. The numbers are in, the stage is set, it’s go time.