Online sales predicted to soar for UK businesses
Companies across the UK have signalled that the rapid growth in online sales is set to continue, with 59 per cent of businesses anticipating more than a quarter of their revenue will be generated online in the next three to five years, according to a MarkMonitor® survey.
The online brand protection specialists surveyed more than 150 business executives, including representatives from some of the nation’s biggest brands, to gauge their views on the issues and challenges of operating online in today’s ever-changing digital world.
The business executives backed the trend that an increasing amount of their revenue would be achieved through online sales during the next few years. The vast majority (78%) said that just three years ago less than a quarter of their revenue was generated online and as many as 42% generated less than five per cent of their total revenue. Today, those companies have seen a hike in sales with 31% stating they now generate at least a quarter of the revenue through their online operations.
When asked about the most important aspects of abuse of their brand online, the vast majority of those surveyed (88%) stated lost sales to counterfeit or pirated goods or damage to reputation as the main areas. This gives a clear indication of the reasons why more companies are seeking online brand protection.
The survey results also displayed an awareness of the impact to brands on social media, and the challenges of tracking every instance of brand infringement. Companies are aware of the issues and many have had to review their digital marketing strategies to account for the exponential number of social media users and the increased threats to their brand. 68% of the people polled said that social media platforms were very important to the perception of their brand online.
Simon Whitehouse, senior director, EMEA, MarkMonitor, said: “The overall results point to the rapid growth in the online sector and the significance of brand reputation in this market. Businesses work incredibly hard to build their brands and create a successful and strong online reputation. Damage to the reputation can have a massive impact on long term customer confidence, which in itself may lead to an even greater loss in sales.
“This survey underlines the importance that in today’s rapidly expanding digital world, with the growing incidences of brand abuse, it is more important than ever to adopt the most robust and reliable brand protection strategy.”