Most small businesses in Ireland still don't bother with social media

And while many companies now have a web presence, a much smaller share is set up to trade online.

By Conor McMahon Deputy editor, Fora

THE MAJORITY OF small businesses in Ireland are not on social media, according to a new survey.

Some 56% of those businesses with 10 or fewer employs polled for the latest InterTradeIreland quarterly ‘business monitor’ said they had no presence on any social platform, fresh data compiled for Fora has shown.

Even when larger firms were included in the figures, more than half who took part in the all-island survey said they had no social media accounts.

However the result is skewed by firms in the construction industry, where just over one-quarter of businesses are on at least one of Facebook, Twitter or other sites.

business monitor survey 2 Business monitor
Source: Perceptive Insight

Unsurprisingly, the survey showed that businesses in the leisure and hospitality sector dedicate the most amount of time to updating social media, with one-fifth of the contingent spending between five and 12 hours a week posting to the sites.

That said, most do not have an employee whose main job is to manage social media – a result that was consistent across every sector.

Many businesses that answered the survey have their own website, but three-quarters do not have the ability to trade online, mainly because business owners believe their product or service is unsuitable to be sold over the web.

ability to sell online chart
Source: Perceptive Insight

More stable

The all-island business body’s survey also showed that the number of business reporting growth has fallen significantly on the same time last year.

While nearly one-quarter say their operations are expanding, that is a 15 percentage-point drop compared to 12 months earlier.

However, the share of businesses describing their situations as ‘stable’ has increased, and fewer are looking to wind down or are in ‘survival mode’ only.

Large businesses are experiencing the strongest expansion, with nearly half of surveyed firms with 50 or more employees reporting rapid growth.

business monitor survey 1
Source: Perceptive Insight

Brexit

Over half of businesses in the Republic say they expect the UK’s decision to leave the EU will decrease cross-border sales, with a whopping 97% saying they had no plan in place to deal with a Brexit.

Businesses in Northern Ireland were more uncertain about the fallout from the referendum, with 35% saying they didn’t know what affect it would have on trade across the border.

“The outcome of the EU referendum has caught many businesses on the hop,” InterTradeIreland’s strategy and policy director Aidan Gough said.

“(While) companies will still trade under the same rules and regulations, we would encourage them to hedge any exposure their business may have to volatile movements in the sterling-euro exchange rate.”

However, the vast majority of businesses on both sides of the border said the UK’s decision to leave the EU will not change investment plans. The survey began on 27 June, a week after the referendum.

Rising overhead costs, energy costs and cash flow remain the biggest issues for business owners despite a slight drop in their level of importance compared to the last quarterly survey.