BIA/Kelsey Reports U.K. Small Businesses Allocate Nearly One-Third
of Marketing Budget to Online Media
New Local Commerce Monitor U.K. study reveals U.K. SMEs spent an
average of £1,406 during the past 12 months on advertising and
promotion
CHANTILLY, Va. (Nov. 1, 2011) – Small and medium-sized enterprises
in the United Kingdom spent an average of £1,406 to advertise
and market their businesses during the past
12 months, according to the first wave of Local
Commerce Monitor U.K. (LCM: U.K.), a new study
by local media research firm BIA/Kelsey.
Respondents to the online survey reported spending
30.3 percent of their total advertising and
promotion budget on online media.
“In general, we found that usage of new media — various
online formats, including social — between the U.S. and U.K.
is a mixed picture,” said Steve Marshall, director of research
and consulting, BIA/Kelsey. “For instance, U.K. SMEs use more
online classified directories, but less email marketing. In addition,
key traditional media, such as classified directories, newspapers and
magazines are used much more by U.K. SMEs than those in the U.S.”
U.K. SMEs use a wide variety of traditional and digital media for
marketing their businesses. Survey respondents report using the following
media “to advertise or promote their business:
Facebook: 35.1 percent
Email: 33.4 percent
Online classified
directories: 33.1 percent
Print classified
directories: 32.1 percent
Local newspapers
or local magazines: 31.5 percent
Twitter:
18.2 percent
Pay-per-click (PPC): 13 percent
Compared with the U.S., U.K. SMEs use less broadcast and social media advertising.
Few U.K. SMEs use broadcasting to advertise their businesses, with the highest
usage of a broadcast medium at 5.2 percent for radio. Mobile advertising is
still in its infancy, with no single mobile ad format registering greater than
a 5 percent usage level.
“As the globe shrinks due to digital media, it’s critical for
BIA/Kelsey to continue to enhance our already strong global view of the local
search space,” said Neal Polachek, president, BIA/Kelsey. “This
new survey extends our local media coverage and offers our clients valuable
insights into the U.K. advertising market. This first wave of LCM: U.K. will
provide a baseline against which we can measure trends and developments going
forward.”
This survey is based on BIA/Kelsey’s ongoing Local Commerce Monitor
survey series conducted online annually in the U.S. for more than 10 years
with research partner ConStat. The complete LCM: U.K. survey report containing
more than 75 data charts is available for purchase. Visit http://www.biakelsey.com/LCM-UK to more information about this report, view the table of contents and download
the executive summary.
About Local Commerce Monitor and LCM: U.K.
Local Commerce Monitor (LCM) is BIA/Kelsey’s annual tracking survey
of small and medium-sized businesses (referred to in the U.K. as small and
medium-sized enterprises, or SMEs), conducted online with research partner
ConStat since 1999. The survey measures where SMBs are spending their advertising
and promotional budgets and how their media usage and spending habits are evolving.
Local Commerce Monitor U.K. (LCM: U.K.) is a new survey by BIA/Kelsey. The
data from this first wave of LCM: U.K. provide a granular snapshot of current
media usage, behaviors and conditions in the United Kingdom. The survey was
conducted online in February 2011. The sample consisted of 308 small businesses
in the U.K., drawn from a cross-section of the U.K., so as not to be dominated
by the greater London area. The sample also included a substantial number of “solo” businesses,
with 43 percent of respondents reporting just one full-time employee in their
business (including themselves).
About BIA/Kelsey
BIA/Kelsey advises companies in the local media space through consulting
and valuation services, research, Continuous Advisory Services and
conferences. Since 1983 BIA/Kelsey has been a resource to the media,
mobile advertising, telecommunications, Yellow Pages and electronic
directory markets, as well as to government agencies, law firms and
investment companies looking to understand trends and revenue drivers.
BIA/Kelsey’s annual conferences draw executives from across industries
seeking expert guidance on how companies are finding innovative ways
to grow. Additional information is available at http://www.biakelsey.com,
on the company’s Local
Media Watch blog, Twitter (http://twitter.com/BIAKelsey)
and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/biakelsey).
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Company Information
BIA Advisory Services (BAS) is doing business as (d/b/a) BIA/Kelsey. BAS is owned by BIA Financial Network. For more information on this parent company and for a list of affiliated companies, please click now.
