Earlier in the month we sent out a web hosting survey to our customers, hoping to find out a little bit more about how people use their hosting, and how small to medium sized business fit into the bigger picture known as The Internet. A lot of research has been published about the performance of bigger, publicly listed online businesses such as Amazon or Ebay, but its really difficult to find anything on smaller online businesses. I think this is pretty surprising considering the contribution that smaller start-ups and business make to both the Internet and the American economy. Over 3000 of you responded and we were really blown away by the results, so thanks to everyone that took part and I’m pleased to share with you our results below:
We Asked: What is your primary reason for having a web presence? You Answered:
We Asked: Is this your first e-commerce or business website? You Answered:
We Asked: How many years have you had this business? You Answered:
We Asked: Did you establish your website to supplement your income? You Answered:
We Asked: What percentage of your income do you forecast will come as a result of having this website over the next 12 months? You Answered:
We Asked: Has the economic downturn affected your business? You Answered:
We Asked: What percentage have your revenues dropped this year versus last? You Answered: 
We Asked: What are some challenges you’ve faced in setting up your online business? You Answered:
We Asked: What do you expect from your hosting company in terms of enabling your business? You Answered:
We Asked: Are the products and services offered by MidPhase important to the success of your business? You Answered:
We Asked: What kind of growth do you anticipate for your business over the next 12 months? You Answered:
Once again thanks to everyone who took part in the survey, we’ll post the winner of the Dell MiniBook at the end of the month in the blog – so watch this space! tom 
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6 Responses to Hosting Survey Results
Patrick
August 25th, 2009 at 9:43 am
Interesting that such a small percentage of revenue will be coming from hosting services over the next 12 months.
I would have thought that it would be higher. Is this because most people are just using their websites as a brochure style shop-front and not e-commerce or sales portals?
Tom
August 25th, 2009 at 10:23 am
I agree, I think a couple of things might be influencing this:
Our survey shows that a lot of small businesses (our customers) are creating an online business to supplement their income. I think this is probably the starting point for many smaller online businesses, turning full-time if and when they become a success.
Is it brochure-ware or ecommerce? Only 9% of the responses were defined as ‘ecommerce’, while the other 55% listed themselves as ‘business’ .
Difficulty tracking where a lead came from could also be a factor.
Russ
October 8th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
What I find is intriguing is that about 50% of the people expect to only get 0-10% next year from their website. That is proof that people really need SEO and strategic planning for their websites. That is and will be in high demand in the future for sure.
Dave Kinnear
October 8th, 2009 at 9:07 pm
I’m not sure that the survey indicates that SEO is needed (although it likely is needed). The economy is a drag on all business, especially retail, including on-line retail. My thoughts are that people are simply being conservative about increases in revenue. Also, percentages are tricky. If I’m doing $10 a month and go to $20, my growth looks pretty darned good! If the $10 growth comes from a new or revamped website, then my growth of on-line business looks fantastic.
Susan
October 8th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Dumb question,
You asked about ‘Assessable customer support’ or do you mean ‘accessible customer support?’
I never thought about having assessable customer support. What could we assess from them?
Jake
November 27th, 2009 at 11:53 am
Thanks for the comment Susan… fixed