It's arrived.....The something4 '2006 SME Christmas Trend Report'

Research JUST for SME owner/managers!

At something4 our mission in life is to help SME businesses grow. With that in mind, we have been working hard to compile relevant, sector specific research to provide SME's with a better understanding of their market position and sales trends.

Something4 manages the online presence and payment interfaces for more SMEs and multi-channel retailers than probably almost anyone else in the UK. Uniquely, we also don't just see one end of the transaction i.e. traffic or sales, we see the whole thing. We are now putting this wealth of information to good use by producing sector specific reports and sharing them with SME's owners and managers as a FREE and exclusive support service.

The reports will provide such important figures as traffic trend and sales conversion rates; in many cases we can even compare trade sectors. The first report is an analysis of Christmas 2006 online trading in relation to previous years - and unlike any other research you may have read previously, these figures are not 'skewed' by large multi-national traders, they relate solely to SME businesses.

Our research looks specifically at the online trends within the D.I.Y, Arts and Crafts, Health and Beauty, Professions/B2B, Educational, Home and Garden and Automotive markets; comparing statistics across various years.....

Here's what we found.....

The SME Market in General

• Traffic continues to grow, on average Christmas traffic per trader was up 38% on 2005.
  
• Average trader traffic volumes are 645 visitors a day in November vs 705 in December.
  
• Average sales conversion rate is down 37% on 2005 to 1.17%, i.e; 1 in 85 browsers will turn into buyers, down from 1 in 53 in 2005.

The D.I.Y Industry

Traffic

• There were approximately 600 hits and 9 sales per day for a typical trader in this sector over the Christmas trading period 2006.
  
• There was a 500% increase in website traffic between 2002 and 2006.
  
• Average site traffic up 33% on 2005 volumes.

Sales

• Sales in general were up by 25% in comparison to our 2005 records.
  
• The buy to click ratio was 1 in 133, however the sales ratio has been declining steadily since our records began in 2002 (down by 63%).

Arts and Crafts

Traffic

• There were approximately 860 site visitors and 10 sales per day, per trader over the Christmas trading period 2006.
  
• Website traffic is, on average, 50% higher than Christmas 2005.
  
• There has been a 530% increase in website traffic between 2002 and 2006.

Sales

• Sales in general were up 12% in comparison to our 2005 records, but growth is now slowing.
  
• Sales are currently over 230% higher than our first recorded figures in 2002.
  
• The buy to click ratio was 1 in 90, however the sales ratio has been declining steadily since our records began in 2002 (down by 57%).

The Health and Beauty Industry

Traffic

• There were approximately 635 site visitors and 6 sales per day, per trader over the Christmas trading period 2006.
  
• Traffic is up by an average of 85% in comparison to 2005.
  
• There has been a 330% increase in Christmas website traffic between 2002 and 2006.

Sales

• Sales in general were down by 36% in comparison to our 2005 records.
  
• Sales are now 175% higher than our recorded figures in 2005.
  
• The buy to click ratio is 1 in 100, however the sales ratio has been declining at a steady pace since our records began in 2002 (down by 50%).

The Professions/B2B

Traffic

• Average website traffic growth has been slowing within this sector, despite this fact, there were approximately 1080 hits and 19 sales per day over the Christmas trading period.
• Traffic is up, on average by 44% in comparison to 2005.
  
• The visitor volumes were consistently higher in December compared to November, an increase of 10%.

Sales

• Sales were almost 750% higher than our recorded figures in 2002.
  
• The sales ratio has been declining steadily since our records began in 2002 (down by 80%).
  
• Average sales per trader were 36%.
  
• 175% higher than 2002.

Home and Garden

Traffic

• The average website traffic is increasing within this sector, where there were approximately 260 visitors per trader and 10 sales per day over the Christmas trading period.
  
• The visitor volumes were consistently higher in December in comparison to November, a healthy increase of 25%.

Sales

• The buy to click ratio was 1 in 72 visitors.

The Educational Sector

Traffic

• There were approximately 151 visitors per trader and 4 sales per day over the Christmas trading period within the Educational Sector.
  
• Website traffic is, on average, 10% higher than 2005.
  
• There was a 850% increase in website traffic between 2002 and 2006.

Sales

• Sales in general were up 72% in comparison to our 2005 records.
  
• Sales per trader are now over 200% higher than our recorded figures in 2005.
  
• The buy to click ratio was 1 in 40, however the sales ratio has been declining steadily since our records began in 2002 (down by 75%).

The Automotive Industry
(Excluding Car Sales)

Traffic

• The average in website traffic growth slows - there were approximately 310 visitors per trader and 5 sales per day over the Christmas trading period 2006.
  
• Website traffic is, on average, 60% higher than 2005.
  
• December volumes in this sector were again higher than November.

Sales

• Sales in general were up 31% in comparison to our 2005 records.
  
• Sales are now over 730% higher than our recorded figures in 2002.
  
• The buy to click ratio was 1 in 64 visitors.

We hope our research gives you a better indication as to what's happening within the SME marketplace and demonstrates the undoubted hard work that you and your staff put into reaching your goals during the busy Christmas period.

We may have even more detailed information regarding your trader sector, so please don't hesitate to get in touch.

.....So what's the conclusion?

The Internet boom continues, on average, traders are enjoying increased traffic and sales, but conversion rates are dropping, probably due to the increased competition, making it more important than ever to attract browsers at the lowest cost.

COMING SOON.....

The something4 '2007 Easter Trend Report'

And.....

The something4 '2006 SME Trading Summary'