Other than during the initial cyber bubble in the 90’s, no.
So far in 2011 UK consumers have spent a whopping £10 billion online. The figures of approximately £4.9 billion spent in February alone are up 20% on the same month in 2010. This is a strong indicator for anyone who had been thinking about moving their business online that now is the time to get on with it.
The figures for e-retailers have never been rosier with the equivalent of £79 per person being spent in the UK online in February and with a wealth of assistance available to all kinds of businesses to make the most of what they have to offer by utilising online opportunities. But why is it that consumers are now spending more online than ever before?
Trust
One of the major factors that have given online shopping such a boost is that people trust online stores more now. With more investment in user experience design by websites people find them easier to use. With more recognisable security measures people feel safer, and just through peoples gradual increase in trust as their orders have made it to their homes unhindered and because they haven’t seen their credit card details sold to third parties. In fact the reliability of payment gateways for e-commerce sites and evolving money transfer services mean that the security of online purchasing has dramatically improved in recent years. Trust really is a huge factor and if you can get your customers to trust your site, you will have won half the battle.
Strong Adoption
The UK stands out when compared to our neighbours France and Germany as we spend more online than they do combined and 10x as much as people spend online in Italy and Spain. The UK has evidently adopted online retail with a passion and thanks to strong links in other media, in-store promotions and investment in internet marketing the trend looks set to continue. If you get your own online store set up, you can be certain that there are customers out there who will pay you a visit if you have your marketing in place.
Cheaper
Of course one of the big reasons why people shop online more now than ever before is the fact that it is simply cheaper. With less over heads an online store can charge less for the same items that a high street store would have to charge. Plus with most major supermarkets offering a free home delivery service people can strap on their lazy slippers and save money on petrol, bus fares and shoe leather by not having to go to the shops at all.
Your online future is bright so what are you waiting for?
Since the launch of the iPad in 2010 it has met a generally favourable response from users, reviewers and businesses. Time Magazine even listed it in their top 50 best inventions of the year 2010. There are now many copies (though some say they had the idea first) of this product which certainly shows that it is being bought in high numbers. But aside from it being a great invention, how can it help your or your business’ productivity in the real world?
Do you have a Twitter account for your business? Chances are that you probably do (if you don’t, you should) because you heard that along with other social media applications, For any business selling online, having a good 
‘Inflation’ is basically the rise in prices of general goods and services over a set period of time. When inflation is said to be high, it means that everything you buy is generally more expensive than it was before. So let’s say you could buy a chocolate bar for £1 and then the price goes up to £1.10: that is when inflation has gone up, and your pound is still worth the same amount and no longer stretches to the price of a tasty snack.
Times are tough for small businesses. Technically the economy has not literally shrunk, but the fact it stayed the same as it did for the previous quarter, a flat graph if you will, means that there was zero growth, which is as good as shrinkage. This has raised fears that despite some sectors showing signs of growth, overall we may be heading back for another round of recession.
If you run an online business, or are at least trying to run an online business, you must have felt the urge to buy a smartphone such as the new Nexus S by now. Being able to check your emails, calculate your tax return, call your clients, shop for merchandise and perform thousands of other tasks all from the palm of your hand is, indeed, handy.
Payment companies Visa, MasterCard and PayPal have all fallen victim to digital attacks at the beginning of December due to their withdrawal of service to WikiLeaks. A group of online campaigners, under the name Anonymous have been behind a series of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on the company’s websites after they stopped serving WikiLeaks in the wake of its release of classified US embassy cables. A DDoS attack basically bombards the target website with page requests to the extent that the site can’t cope and crashes.
As a business and website owner you will probably be used to cold callers offering you a range of services which you may or may not be interested in. A new type of cold caller has grown in popularity recently, to an extent that has provoked a warning to be issued across the UK.
With companies such as Google, Facebook, Cisco, Intel and British Telecom all expressing an interest in a newly proposed ‘silicon valley’, now would seem like a great time to be doing business in the UK. The proposal, pitch by PM David Cameron, is based in and around Shoreditch and the Olympic Park in London and is aimed at encouraging a swath of new innovative companies, as well as big name technology brands to set up shop in the UK at a new purpose built global hub.
Lancore could well be your financial saviour.
