11:21:44 - 22 December 2004

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For small and mid-sized retailers without a Web site, making a resolution for 2005 should be easy - join the Internet e-commerce revolution.

"This survey is proof of the increasing acceptance of shopping online and the increasingly positive attitudes towards small businesses," said John Lee, Hostway's vice president of marketing.

According to a national survey sponsored by Web-hosting leader Hostway Corp. (www.hostway.com), online shopping has become an accepted facet of everyday life. The national study of 2,500 consumers found that more than 90 percent of consumers have purchased products or services online, and the vast majority report that they are satisfied with their e-commerce experiences.

Even more telling is the fact that many of these consumers are just as willing to buy from small online retailers as they are from larger, national e-commerce providers. Three-fourths of consumers who have shopped Web sites of both large and small companies said size is not a factor in satisfying their online shopping needs.

According to the most recent statistics released by the U.S. Small Business Administration, there are approximately 23 million small businesses in the United States.
Of these businesses, approximately 70 percent had or planned on having a Web site by the end of the 2004, as reported in an April 2004 Harris Interactive survey.

"The Internet is helping to level the playing field, allowing small and medium-size companies to compete with the giants," added Lee. "There's still time to build a Web presence and take advantage of the e-commerce explosion."

The e-commerce survey, conducted recently for Hostway by market research firm TNS, also found that nearly half of consumers (48 percent) will buy from an online retailer that does not have a physical presence, which opens the door for purely Web-based businesses.

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