Most small businesses baffled by the web

The web revolution is passing many of Australia’s small businesses by, a new survey suggests, with many having little or no web presence and no registered domain name.

The web revolution is passing many of Australia’s small businesses by, a new survey suggests, with many having little or no web presence and no registered domain name.

Out of almost 1700 small businesses surveyed by accounting software firm MYOB, only 41% say they have a website. Even fewer businesses (29%) actually use their websites for e-commerce.

A slightly higher proportion of businesses have registered a domain name, but they are still the minority with 55% saying they have yet to do so.

The proportion of web-active businesses varies widely depending on the sector. Only 11% of businesses in the transport and storage industry have a website, the lowest of any sector, ahead of agriculture (27%) and construction (29%).

At the other end of the spectrum, 72% of communications, media and marketing businesses are on the web, ahead of cultural and recreation services (71%). Surprisingly, the information and communication technology sector ranks third in the web stakes, with only 63% of ICT businesses saying they are on the web.

Read more on e-commerce, domain names and online trends