An ACNielsen International Research survey commissioned by eBay indicates 51 percent of small businesses that utilize the Internet believe that the Internet has helped their businesses become more profitable. Fifty-eight percent say it has helped their businesses grow or expand. Fifteen percent say the Internet is necessary for their business' very survival.
The survey, based on the feedback of approximately 400 small businesses with less than 100 employees, also indicates that many small businesses view the Internet as a powerful sales tool. One out of three (33 percent) small business owners who use the Internet sell goods and services online, and 43 percent find sales prospects online.
Additionally, many small businesses who use the Internet say they make online business purchases. Fifty-four percent procure computers and office technology online and forty-eight percent buy capital equipment and supplies on the Internet. Thirty-three percent buy inventory for resale online and more than one-in-five (21 percent) purchase office furnishings. Fifty-nine percent make online purchases of other business-related goods.
"Clearly the Internet is helping fuel the success of many small businesses. The Internet helps small business owners acquire new customers, expand into new geographies, and purchase the goods and services needed to successfully run a business," said Jordan Glazier, general manager of eBay Business.
Results from the survey show that small business owners are pointing to eBay as a powerful resource for increasing their bottom line. Among the small businesses that utilize eBay as a purchasing channel, 70 percent say that eBay has helped their businesses become more profitable.
The survey was conducted via telephone amongst 400 U.S. based business owners and decision makers with less than 100 full time employees. There were two sampling components or cells in the study. The first was composed of a random sample of 200 businesses that fit the target criteria. The second was composed of a sample of 200 businesses that fit the target criteria and had used eBay for purchasing in the past 12 months. This sample was selected randomly and screened from a database provided by eBay of purchasers in their business and industrial category.
Last month eBay revealed results of another study that indicated there are 430,000 eBay sellers who are "Primary" or "Secondary" sellers. eBay defines primary sellers as full-time sellers whose sole source of income derives from eBay sales, and eBay defines secondary sellers as those who use their eBay business to generate a secondary source of income.
