An online business is defined as any organization that uses the internet to operate. This could range from a travel blog to an online retail store. Online businesses usually provide products and services over the internet like eBooks, e-courses, sources of information or physical products.
According to Forbes, the global e-commerce market is estimated to reach $6.2 trillion USD in 2023. With the ability to work from wherever you want whilst selling products 24 hours a day, it’s no surprise that more and more people are setting up online businesses. Whether you have already started or are new to the game, online businesses offer a lot of room for growth, both personally and professionally.
A great way to start is by undertaking some research around statistics. Whether you love or hate them, statistics can guide business choices and enable you to make decisions more effectively. Staying up to date with the latest stats will also offer the opportunity to develop a more effective marketing plan and grow your reach.
In order to stay on top of the most recent trends, we have rounded up some of the most useful online business statistics for 2023. Broken into 5 main categories, we will look at:
- Demographic Statistics
- E-commerce Statistics
- Marketing Statistics
- Customer Behavior Statistics
- Payment Statistics
Demographic Statistics
Understanding your audience is one of the best ways to grow your brand. If you really know your audience then you can determine what it is they are looking for. Demographic statistics helps us build a picture of our audience including age groups, gender and location. Equally, online business demographics are also useful because they provide insight into the wider market. Take a look below for some of the key demographic stats.
- There are currently an estimated 12-24 million ecommerce websites around the world. That’s a lot of online businesses!
- In 2022, the average age of eCommerce business owners was 43.8.
- The majority of online business owners are women (61.1%) compared to men (38.9%)
- On average, men tend to spend more per transaction with an average spend of $220 compared to a spend of $151 for women.
- 4. 59% of Millennials will visit Amazon first.
- 67 % Millennials and 56% Gen Xers prefer to shop online rather than visit physical stores, making them the biggest online buyers.
- China holds the largest eCommerce market followed by the USA.
- When it comes to specific categories, South Korea holds the largest market for fashion, beauty, household items and groceries.
- The countries with the highest number of online spenders are South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States.
E-commerce Statistics
E-commerce is a type of online business that sells its products solely online. If you have an online business, it is likely that you will fall into this category. Recent statistics show that e-commerce is growing in popularity with an estimated 95% of all retail purchases expected to be made online by 2040. With more and more people using their smartphones to make purchases, it’s also important that e-commerce businesses offer mobile friendly websites that are easy to use. Take a look below for some more insights.
- 40% of online shopping minutes were spent on mobile phones followed by 11% on tablets, signifying the importance of mobile friendly websites.
- Over the next three years, the e-commerce market is expected to reach over $8.1 trillion USD. That’s an estimated growth of almost $2 trillion.
- Out of all the people who abandon their shopping basket, 72% are on desktop devices. This highlights the importance of creating a website that is user friendly and easy to use.
- The most popular online products on Shopify are power tools, dog toys and costume shoes.
- When it comes to eCommerce sales, Amazon accounts for 37.8% of online purchases in 2022. The most visited websites in 2022 were eBay, Walmart and AliExpress.
- 30% of online shoppers will return to websites that they have purchased from before, therefore it’s important that you build trust with your customers and encourage them to sign up to newsletters.
- Sustainable products are in demand for 2023 with 77% of consumers preferring eco-friendly products and services.
- 44% of consumers said that they would choose a product for its sustainability features over brand name.
Marketing Statistics
As with any business, marketing plays a very important role. In order to create an effective marketing plan, you will need to stay on top of social media analytics, trends, audience behaviour and more. You will also need to discover which social media channels your target audience uses. Statistics are a great way to find this information and can even improve your digital marketing plan.
- According to Hubspot, influencer marketing is set to be a huge trend for 2023, meaning that online business owners should start utilising it now.
- Instagram, Facebook and YouTube are currently the most popular social media channels for marketing.
- Facebook is a powerful marketing tool with 50 million businesses worldwide using the platform to reach out to customers.
- Roughly 4 million online businesses pay for social media advertising on Facebook.
- The highest social media engagement rates tend to be on Instagram, followed by Facebook and Twitter.
- In 2021, the average worldwide spend on digital advertising was $521 billion USD with a predicted spend of $876 billion by 2026.
- Social media continues to grow with an estimated 4.4 billion users in 2025 compared to 3.6 billion in 2020.
- More online businesses are using video ads on social media, with a 20.1% increase in spending in 2022.
- Instagram ads have the potential to reach up to 1.8billion, a useful stat for online businesses looking to increase growth. In fact, the social media giant now has a larger reach than Facebook.
- The average conversion rate for social media is 3% with Instagram hitting 18%, Facebook 9% and TikTok 2.3%. Responding to customer enquiries, experimenting with calls to action and ad retargeting were all proven to increase conversion.
- 40% of online shoppers made a purchase due something they saw on social media.
Customer Behavior Statistics
Customer behaviour statistics enable online businesses to market their products effectively and make future projections. Due to the current cost of living crisis, consumer behaviour has changed quite dramatically over the last year which has impacted the ways in which online businesses communicate with their customers. By understanding common patterns such as browsing times and purchase rates, you will be able to improve and develop your website to meet customer needs.
- The average time spent on a web page is 52 seconds. As that doesn’t give a lot of browsing time, you need to ensure that your website provides clear and concise information including all fees, delivery times and product information.
- The average shopping cart abandonment rate is 69.9%, resulting in a loss of up to 3 billion per year.
- The most common reason for abandoning a shopping trolley is unexpected costs, followed by long shipping times and being required to create an account at checkout. To prevent this, it’s best to display all upfront costs clearly on your websites along with estimated shipping times.
- Cart abandonment email reminders have a 45% open rate and a 21% click through rate, making them an effective tool.
- Discounts are a useful tool for abandoned shopping carts with 54% of shoppers making a purchase after being offered a price reduction.
- In the US, 83% of online shoppers were satisfied with their overall experience, with ease of checkout and the number of payment options available selected as key factors.
Payment Statistics
Understanding your customer’s payment preferences will ensure that you provide the right options. As more and more people are trying to reduce overspending, customer’s are far more cautious of their spending habits in 2023. This means that debit cards are becoming a more popular payment method. The below stats will show some of the most popular forms of payment along with security concerns and cryptocurrency data.
- Consumer spending habits have changed over the last year with 59% using debit cards and 21% of online shoppers stating that they will not use credit to make purchases.
- The second two most common forms of payment are credit cards (51%) and digital wallets (33%).
- Low prices, easy return policies and payment options are three of the main factors that shoppers consider when browsing online.
- Mobile-commerce sales (using mobile phones to make purchases) rose to $359.32 billion US dollars in 2021 with a prediction of $728.28 billion by 2025.
- In the US, 66% of shoppers have switched to mobile payments through apps and mobile wallets including Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay.
- The majority of hackers are able to infiltrate an organisation within just 12 hours, meaning that online businesses need to invest in good quality cyber security.
- According to a recent survey, 75% of retailers plan to accept cryptocurrencies within the next year.
Conclusion
Using the above statistics, it’s safe to say that online businesses are expected to reach wider audiences in 2023. The e-commerce market is expected to reach $6.2 trillion USD by the end of the year, meaning good news for online business owners.
One of the biggest implications for online businesses seems to be cybersecurity. Recent stats signify the importance of using proper cybersecurity, but it’s certainly not cheap. By the end of 2023, it is estimated that there will be between 12 and 24 million e-commerce businesses worldwide. That’s a lot of competition, especially when you are first starting out. Luckily, digital marketing is a great way to reach audiences with 62% of consumers sharing online deals. Business owners should also take into account that complicated return policies are one of the biggest deterrents for making purchases online.
Despite the challenges, the future is also looking bright for online businesses with 24% of all retail purchases expected to take place online by 2026, compared to 20.8% in 2023. By 2040, this prediction grows to a whopping 95%. Mobile shopping is also expected to increase with more and more people using their phones to make purchases. Projections also suggest that more online businesses will use AI technology to improve customer experience, forecasting and pricing.
All in all, the online business statistics for 2023 are very positive, offering some useful insights to grow your business.
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