Small businesses adoption of online model to stay

The results from Westpac’s SME COVID-19 Tracking Report, which is an ongoing weekly pulse check of small to medium sized businesses throughout the pandemic, shows 42 per cent of the businesses who moved online as a result of the pandemic will now make the change permanent.
SME COVID-19 Tracking Report results:

Of the SMEs who operated both an online and a physical store during COVID-19, the survey showed 52 per cent of revenue came from their online store, while 48 per cent came from their physical store.
In terms of sectors who moved their businesses entirely online during the pandemic, education and training (23%) led the way, followed by arts and recreation (13%) and retail trade (12%).
Only five per cent of food and beverage businesses were able to move online completely during the pandemic, further proof the hospitality industry has been hit extremely hard by COVID-19.
10 per cent of SMEs who operated a physical store alone at the start of the year have moved online completely, six per cent have kept their physical store and also started trading online and 71 per cent have kept just a physical store.
Victoria has seen the biggest proportional shift towards online stores versus physical stores of any state.
Around eight in 10 SMEs have had a reduction in revenue as a result of COVID-19, and while one in two SMEs are still feeling financially vulnerable or worse today, they are feeling more secure than they were in March.

Westpac’s Davidson Institute Financial Education specialist Lali Wiratunga said the results from the COVID-19 Tracking Report showed how resilient Australian small and medium sized businesses could be when faced with a once in a generation challenge.

“This year has been extremely challenging for many small businesses, but many have adapted. We’ve seen more change in the way businesses operate in the last year, than we’ve seen in a very long time.

“Many businesses, particularly those in Victoria, have shifted part or all of their business model online. What’s great to see, is that three-quarters (74%) say it’s made their business easier to run, and a further 60 per cent say its reduced operating costs,” said Mr Wiratunga.
Additional statistics:

Of the SMEs who permanently moved their business online:

74 per cent say moving the business online has made it easier to run
67 per cent are marketing the business online
60 per cent believe going online has reduced operating costs
59 per cent say moving online has increased revenue

Mr Wiratunga said there are several things SMEs should take into consideration before moving their business online.

“SMEs should consider whether an online model will effectively grow their market share and earnings and weigh up whether the time and money to grow an online business will increase revenue in the months and years to come.

“This means you need a good understanding of the business’ financial picture and ensure you’ve got the cashflow to run your business, in parallel to moving it online. Start by gathering the most up-to-date financial information, including the business’ month to month revenue figures, future turnover projections, cashflow forecasts and an accurate picture of your debt.

“Going online may also require a substantial amount of extra work and staffing. SMEs should consider and plan for how to effectively resource the online component of the business, while also running their traditional business.

“It’s also worth investigating what can be done to use online tools to better serve existing customers and communities before thinking about selling to new customers. There are quick wins that could be explored, like making better use of your businesses’ social media channels to connect with customers. From here you could review and prioritise opportunities for improvement across the business, for example by using artificial intelligence, automation and machine learning, you can better understand, anticipate and respond to improve the customer experience,” said Mr Wiratunga.