SMBs and Their Websites in 2020: Where do European SMBs Stand? – Survey
Published on: 05 Sep 2022 | Author: Aline Strouvens
Marketing Reports
In this Marketing Report:
- More and More SMBs Active on the Web
- Which SMBs Are Most Likely to Have a Website?
- Breakdown per Country
- Why Don’t All SMBs Have a Website?
- Priorities of SMBs With a Website
- Digitalisation Creates Opportunity
- Methodology
The importance of digitalisation is constantly coming back to the table. With this in mind, at Sortlist we asked ourselves what is the relationship that SMBs have with their website. We conducted a survey to 500 SMBs in order to better understand how these companies perceive their website and online presence.
22%
Percentage of SMBs that do not have a website in 2020
Content
#1 priority for SMB websites in 2020
Germany
The country where SMBs are most likely to have a website
More and More SMBs Active on the Web
SMB Presence on the Web
Our study found that 48% of SMBs launched a website before 2019 and almost 15% launched a website in 2019.
A website is important for branding purposes.
Which SMBs Are Most Likely to Have a Website?
Size Matters
90% of companies with an annual turnover of between 30 and 50 million euros have a website.
For companies with annual revenues between €0 and €100,000, this figure falls to 45%.
The €100,000 barrier seems to play a role in the adoption of a website.
Nationality of a Company
Belgian SMBs are the least likely to have an online presence, while German SMBs are far ahead.
Only 22% of German SMBs say they do not have a website. This figure rises to 42% for Belgian SMBs.
Breakdown per Country
France
In France, 34% of SMBs do not have a website. Among the 66% that do have a website, we noticed two priorities:
- 35% want to make their website more adapted to the mobile format.
- Generate quality content.
Germany
In Germany, 22% of SMBs do not have a website. Of the 78% that do have a website, the same two priorities emerge:
- 36% want to make their website more suitable for the mobile format.
- Generate quality content.
The Netherlands
In the Netherlands, 25% of SMBs do not have a website. Those that do signal out the following priorities:
- 51% of these SMBs want to make their website more adapted to the mobile format, i.e. more than half!
- Content generation takes second place to the importance of the mobile format.
Spain
In Spain, the situation is quite similar to that in France. 33% of SMBs do not have a website, and the priorities of the 67% of SMBs with a website are the same:
- 35% want to make their website more adapted to the mobile format.
- Generate quality content.
Belgium
42% of Belgian SMBs do not have a website, the highest figure in this study. They seem more concerned than other SMBs about their transition to mobile:
- 43% of Belgian SMBs want to make their website more mobile-friendly.
- The safety of navigation is particularly emphasised by Belgian SMBs.
Why Don’t All SMBs Have a Website?
The Main Reason for Not Having a Website
Our study revealed four main reasons why some SMBs do not yet have a website dedicated to their business.
Lack of Budget
The third reason cited for the lack of a website is the lack of budget.
According to the results of our study, the overwhelming majority of SMBs allocate a budget ranging from 0 to 10,000€ for the design of their website.
Impact of Covid-19
Nearly 60% of the SMBs that had planned to create a website reduced their budget dedicated to their online presence due to the sanitary crisis.
Priorities of SMBs With a Website
Top Five Priorities for SMB Websites
Our study revealed the five priorities that SMBs with a website have in 2020.
One thing that stands out is the low importance given to improving SEO. Indeed, only 17% of SMEs with a website consider improving SEO to be their priority for 2020.
A Note on Mobile Performance
38% of SMBs surveyed consider that their site should be more mobile-friendly.
Rightly so: between 2013 and 2019, smartphones increased their market share of global traffic from 16.2% to 53.3%.
How Were These SMB Websites Built?
For SMBs that already have a website, 33% of them have decided to collaborate with an agency, whether it be in web design or UX.
Digitalisation Creates Opportunity
Indeed, digitalisation has created a lot of new opportunities for SMBs, but it has also brought its share of complexity. One does not come without the other, and it is necessary to understand this complexity in order to fully take advantage of all the possibilities it brings.
Methodology
The study on which this article is based was conducted between May 19th and May 21st, 2020. Specifically, Sortlist interviewed 500 SMBs, divided between France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain. These SMBs are companies with less than 250 employees and do not exceed 50 million euros in annual turnover. Finally, the respondents of this study were either managing directors or owners of an SMB.
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