Big Commerce 2009 Internet Retailer Survey

2009 Internet Retailer Survey www.BigCommerce.com

http://www.bigcommerce.com/

http://www.bigcommerce.com

2009 Internet Retailer Survey, Presented by BigCommerce

Survey results collected from 21st – 30th September 2009 BigCommerce – The Easiest Way to Sell Online


Survey Summary

After analysing results of the 2009 Internet Retailer Survey, conducted by BigCommerce, it’s clear

that the vast majority of online retailers are new to selling online. Apparel, software and

computers/accessories are the most popular products being sold online and the overwhelming

majority of sales for those surveyed come from their online store as opposed to a traditional bricks

and mortar business.

In regards to the next 12 months, the majority of online retailers take a hopeful view towards

improving sales from their online store and haven seen the best return on investment from email

marketing (37%), Google AdWords (37%) and social media (15%). Email marketing (71%), Google

AdWords (60%) and blogging (42%) comprise the major marketing strategies which will be

implemented by those online retailers surveyed going into 2010.

34% of respondents use FaceBook to communicate with potential customers, while 32% use Twitter.

The typical online retailer posts between 0-2 tweets per week and when asked how Twitter affects

their online sales, the majority (39%) reported that they weren’t able to track the results Twitter has

had on their sales. Similarly, 34% of online retailers who reach out to prospects and customers on

FaceBook reported they didn’t have a way to track sales made from their social media efforts.

How the results were collected

Online retailers using BigCommerce to sell online were invited to participate in the 2009 Internet

Retailer Survey via email invitation. A total of 491 online retailers completed the survey between 21st

and 30th September 2009. The answers to each question are included on the pages that follow.

http://www.bigcommerce.com/




Question 1: What do you sell online?

Answer Optionss Response Percent

Computer & Accessories 13.0%

Automotive 4.3%

Apparel 21.0%

Footwear 4.7%

Pet Supplies 3.5%

Travel & Holidays 1.6%

Books 9.0%

Concert & Event Tickets 2.2%

Electronics 12.6%

Gourmet Good 5.5%

Grocery 2.2%

Ebooks 5.7%

Baby 4.7%

Beauty 8.6%

Camera & Photo 7.3%

Cell Phones & Service 5.3%

Health & Personal Care 11.6%

Home & Garden 11.4%

Home Improvement 2.9%

Industrial & Scientific 3.7%

Jewelry 10.0%

Kitchen & Dining 4.1%

MP3 Downloads 3.1%

Magazines 1.6%

Movies & TV 2.2%

Music 2.6%

Musical Instruments 2.2%

Office Products 7.1%

Patio, Lawn & Garden 1.2%

Shoes 4.5%

Software 13.4%

Sports & Outdoors 9.2%

Toys 7.3%

Video 3.3%

Video Games 3.7%

Watches 3.9%




Question 2: In regards to last year's sales, this year's sales...

Answer Options Response Percent

Are significantly higher 14.3%

Are slightly higher 23.8%

Are the same 14.9%

Are slightly lower 7.7%

Are significantly lower 6.9%

I wasn't selling online last year 32.4%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

What do you sell online?




Question 3: What percentage of your company's sales come purely from your online store?


0-10% 23.8%

11-20% 11.2%

21-30% 9.2%

31-40% 4.5%

41-50% 4.5%

51-60% 3.3%

61-70% 3.9%

71-80% 5.1%

81-90% 5.3%

91-100% 29.3%

In regards to last year's sales, this year's sales...

Are significantly higher

Are slightly higher

Are the same

Are slightly lower

Are significantly lower

I wasn't selling online last year




Question 4: What percentage of your company's sales DO NOT come from your online store?


0-10% 34.4%

11-20% 6.5%

21-30% 4.3%

31-40% 3.1%

41-50% 6.1%

51-60% 5.3%

61-70% 5.9%

71-80% 8.4%

81-90% 10.6%

91-100% 15.5%

What percentage of your company's sales come purely from your online

store?

0-10%

11-20%

21-30%

31-40%

41-50%

51-60%

61-70%

71-80%

81-90%

91-100%




Question 5: What is your biggest challenge in regards to selling online over the next 12

months?


Maintaining my profit margins 3.7%

New competitors entering the market 3.5%

Recruiting and training new staff 1.0%

Increasing my product range 7.3%

Reducing my prices to stay competitive 4.9%

Keeping my bricks and mortar store open 0.6%

Finding new customers 37.7%

Enticing existing customers to repurchase 5.7%

Keeping up with changes in technology 4.5%

Integrating my online store with my back end systems 10.2%

Systemizing my business processes 7.5%

Warehousing and inventory management 4.1%

Customer communication (email marketing, Twitter, etc) 5.3%

Maximizing my marketing budget 4.1%

Other (please specify)

What percentage of your company's sales DO NOT come from your online

store?

0-10%

11-20%

21-30%

31-40%

41-50%

51-60%

61-70%

71-80%

81-90%

91-100%




Question 6: How critical is your online store in respect to your bottom line?


Extremely critical - without it we'd be out of business 40.9%

Critical - it generates significant revenues 21.2%

Slightly important - it brings in orders, but not as many as I'd like 32.8%

Not that important - our main focus is our bricks and mortar store or warehouse 5.1%

What is your biggest challenge in regards to selling online over the next 12

months?

Maintaining my profit margins

New competitors entering the marketRecruiting and training new staff

Increasing my product range

Reducing my prices to stay competitiveKeeping my bricks and mortar store openFinding new customers

Enticing existing customers to repurchaseKeeping up with changes in technologyIntegrating my online store with my back end systemsSystemizing my business processes

Warehousing and inventory managementCustomer communication (email marketing, Twitter, etc)Maximizing my marketing budget




Question 7: Which strategies will you be using over the next 12 months to drive new

customers to your online store?


Google AdWords 59.7%

Online Banner Ads 28.3%

Affiliate Program 26.9%

Email Marketing 70.7%

Newspaper Advertising 12.8%

Cold Calling 6.3%

Social Media (Facebook, Twitter) 51.1%

Direct Mail 22.0%

Trade Shows or Conferences 21.2%

Public Relations 20.0%

Publicity Stunts 4.5%

Strategic Alliances or Partnerships 16.9%

Blogging 42.4%

Podcasts 4.9%

TV Advertising 3.3%

How critical is your online store in respect to your bottom line?

Extremely critical - without it we'd be out of business

Critical - it generates significant revenues

Slightly important - it brings in orders, but not as many as I'd like

Not that important - our main focus is our bricks and mortar store or warehouse




Radio Advertising 4.5%

Classifieds (eBay, CraigsList) 22.2%


Question 8: Which marketing strategy has given you the best return on your investment?


Google AdWords 37.1%

Online Banner Ads 7.9%

Affiliate Program 5.9%

Email Marketing 37.3%

Newspaper Advertising 3.7%

Cold Calling 3.9%

Social Media (Facebook, Twitter) 14.9%

Direct Mail 7.7%

Trade Shows or Conferences 7.3%

Public Relations 9.0%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

Google

AdW

ord

s

Aff

iliate

Pro

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m

New

spaper

Advert

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g

Soci

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(Face

book, T…

Tra

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how

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Confe

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Public

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Stu

nts

Blo

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TV A

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isin

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Cla

ssifie

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(eBay, Cra

igs…

Which strategies will you be using over the next 12 months to drive new

customers to your online store?




Publicity Stunts 0.6%

Strategic Alliances or Partnerships 4.9%

Blogging 10.0%

Podcasts 1.2%

TV Advertising 1.0%

Radio Advertising 1.4%

Classifieds (eBay, CraigsList) 7.3%


Question 9: How would you describe your outlook for sales from your online store over the coming 12 months?


Bleek 3.5%

Hopeful 43.4%

Average 25.3%

Plentiful 23.6%

Overwhelming 4.3%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

Google

AdW

ord

s

Aff

iliate

Pro

gra

m

New

spaper

Advert

isin

g

Soci

al M

edia

(Face

book, T…

Tra

de S

how

s

or

Confe

rence

s

Public

ity S

tunts

Blo

ggin

g

TV A

dvert

isin

g

Cla

ssifie

ds

(eBay, Cra

igs…

Which marketing strategy has given you the best return on your

investment?




Question 10: Do you currently use FaceBook to communicate with customers or shoppers?


Yes 34.4%

No 65.6%

How would you describe your outlook for sales from your online store over

the coming 12 months?

Bleek

Hopeful

Average

Plentiful

Overwhelming




Question 11: If you answered "Yes" to question 10, how would you say FaceBook affects

your online sales?


I can't track how many sales I've had as a result of using FaceBook 34.3%

I've noticed no new sales as a result of using FaceBook 23.6%

I've noticed few new sales as a result of using FaceBook 28.7%

I've noticed quite a few new sales as a result of using FaceBook 10.1%

I've noticed a large amount of new sales as a result of using FaceBook 3.4%

Do you currently use FaceBook to communicate with customers or

shoppers?

Yes

No




Question 12: Do you currently use Twitter to communicate with customers or shoppers?


Yes 31.8%

No 68.2%

If you answered "Yes" to question 10, how would you say FaceBook

affects your online sales?

I can't track how many sales I've had as a result of using FaceBook

I've noticed no new sales as a result of using FaceBook

I've noticed few new sales as a result of using FaceBook

I've noticed quite a few new sales as a result of using FaceBook

I've noticed a large amount of new sales as a result of using FaceBook




Question 13: If you answered "Yes" to question 12, how many new posts do you make on Twitter each week?


0-2 41.3%

3-5 26.9%

6-10 15.0%

11-20 8.4%

21-50 7.2%

Over 50 1.2%

Do you currently use Twitter to communicate with customers or

shoppers?

Yes

No




Question 14: If you answered "Yes" to question 12, how would you say Twitter affects your

online sales?


I can't track how many sales I've had as a result of using Twitter 38.7%

I've noticed no new sales as a result of using Twitter 27.0%

I've noticed few new sales as a result of using Twitter 27.6%

I've noticed quite a few new sales as a result of using Twitter 6.7%

I've noticed a large amount of new sales as a result of using Twitter 0.0%

If you answered "Yes" to question 12, how many new posts do you make

on Twitter each week?

0-2

3-5

6-10

11-20

21-50

Over 50




Question 15: What is your annual marketing budget for your online store?


$0 - $10,000 80.7%

$10,001 - $50,000 14.9%

$50,001 - $100,000 2.6%

$100,001 - $500,000 1.6%

$500,001 - $1,000,000 0.2%

$1,000,001+ 0.0%

If you answered "Yes" to question 12, how would you say Twitter affects

your online sales?

I can't track how many sales I've had as a result of using Twitter

I've noticed no new sales as a result of using Twitter

I've noticed few new sales as a result of using Twitter

I've noticed quite a few new sales as a result of using Twitter

I've noticed a large amount of new sales as a result of using Twitter




What is your annual marketing budget for your online store?

$0 - $10,000

$10,001 - $50,000

$50,001 - $100,000

$100,001 - $500,000

$500,001 - $1,000,000

$1,000,001+

Big Commerce 2009 Internet Retailer Survey

Business

Transcript of Big Commerce 2009 Internet Retailer Survey