Small and medium-sized enterprises identify
customer demand for online promotion and sale platforms
MISSISSAUGA, ON, Oct. 6, 2014 /CNW/ - According to a recent
UPS Canada survey, the majority of small- and medium-sized
enterprises (SMEs) agree that e-commerce plays an important role in
their business (62 per cent). The first of two parts of the
Small Business Challenges survey, conducted by Leger,
reveals a company's website (64 per cent) and Facebook (40 per
cent) are the most frequently used e-commerce channels.
"What we're hearing from our customer's corresponds with the
data; we spend a great deal of time understanding their platforms
and inputting solutions to maximize efficiencies," says
Jim Bena, vice-president of
marketing, UPS Canada. "E-commerce is a prominent component of
business and customers are expecting a seamless experience across
multiple channels."
"By expanding our e-commerce site we've seen our online sales
match those of our in-store sales and I doubt it will be long until
they surpass them," says Kyle Van Der
Velden, owner of North American Quality Purveyors, a local
Calgary menswear distributor. "UPS
has been extremely useful for sending goods internationally, which
has helped broaden our customer base to almost every
continent."
"Four in five SMEs surveyed engage in e-commerce and we are
seeing innovative approaches being taken to tackle challenges such
as regulatory obstacles," adds Bena.
One such recent regulatory challenge is Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL). Some 53
per cent of respondents indicated that the time and costs to manage
new regulations such as CASL is restricting their business growth.
CASL came into effect July 1, 2014 to
ensure consent when commercial electronic messages are sent to
Canadians.
Only half of respondents (48 per cent) to the UPS survey said
that they have a plan in place to address CASL. A further quarter
of respondents (23 per cent) revealed that they plan to use their
e-commerce channels that are in compliance with consent regulations
to counter the impact of Canada's
anti-spam legislation to their marketing initiatives. After a
company website and Facebook, email (23 per cent) tied for third
place with in-store/in-person interactions and Twitter are most
frequently used within the SMEs' toolkit for providing an
omnichannel experience.
Other important findings from the UPS Canada Small Business
Challenges survey include:
- 35 per cent agree that CASL has forced their business to find
new ways to market their product to customers
- Two-thirds of SMEs surveyed feel that e-commerce is 'an
important part of our business' (62 per cent)
- 75 per cent agree that mobile and digital communications,
including e-commerce, is essential to the future competitiveness of
their business
From e-commerce solutions to understanding border compliance and
trade regulations, UPS offers innovative Small Business Solutions
to integrate an omnichannel approach into supply chain strategies.
Small businesses also get a 20 per cent discount by signing up for
the UPS Small Business Program.
"About 13 per cent of SME respondents to our recent survey said
that their e-commerce play was a major factor attributable to their
success," adds Bena. "We want to continue to see this percentage
grow as the impact e-commerce can have on a business's success is
evident. Such as North American Quality Purveyors – who saw their
e-commerce revenue match their retail revenue - show us that
e-commerce, combined with the right partner expertise, can be the
key to help grow business exponentially."
UPS Canada celebrates
Canada's over 1.1 million small-
and medium-sized businesses during Small Business Week taking place
October 19-25, 2014. Watch for more
SME e-commerce success stories on the UPS website. #UPSSME
Methodology
This survey was completed on-line between August 11 to August 22, 2014 using Leger's online
panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 302. Individuals working for, or
running, a business that currently spends at least $5,000 annually on shipping were interviewed.
Only those at a director or senior manager level or above
qualified. A probability sample of the same size would yield a
margin of error of +/- 5.7%, 19 times out of 20.
About UPS
UPS (NYSE:UPS) is a global leader in logistics, offering a broad
range of solutions including the transportation of packages and
freight; the facilitation of international trade, and the
deployment of advanced technology to more efficiently manage the
world of business. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 220
countries and territories worldwide. The company can be found on
the web at ups.com® and its corporate blog can be found
at blog.ups.com. To get UPS news direct, visit
pressroom.ups.com/RSS.
SOURCE UPS Canada Ltd.