Small Businesses Look To The Web For Recession Relief

When the going gets tough, small businesses get on the Web. At least, that's the impression you get from Register.com's new Small Business Web Survey.It seems that even as the threat of recession looms over the country's economy, more than two-thirds of small businesses polled still don't expect their Web revenue to drop in the 12 months (About a third expect Web earnings to grow). To make sure the online business keeps flowing, they plan to invest in Web design, search engine optimization (SEO), and email marketing

This group, at least, is committed to doing business online. More than half (55%) have registered more than one domain name for their business, and some 41% earn more than a quarter of their revenue online. And yet there is plenty of room for improvement. A fifth (20%) dont even know how much revenue their site brings in.

Metrics may not be their top priority, though. Respondents cited Web design (53%), SEO (43%), and email marketing (41%) as the areas where they expected to invest the most.

To be sure, the survey of 800 small business customers comes from Register.com, which sells domains and various other Web-oriented services, so you have to take it with a grain of salt. But frankly, it makes sense. Web sales typically offer the best bang for the buck, and as the economy softens, companies naturally look to focus on their most profitable sales channels.