New research commissioned by Onecom, an independent telecoms provider in the UK, reveals SMEs believe that poor internet services have cost them on average £3,351 each in lost business over the past three years. Some 22% of SMEs estimate their losses to be even higher at £5,000 each.
Perhaps not surprisingly, 37% of SMEs rate the internet service they receive as average or poor, which helps explain why 39% are looking to switch providers over the next 12 months.
In terms of why SMEs think their Internet service is poor, 32% put this down to being based in rural areas where the connection is bad. However, 23% blame the telecommunications provider, and 22% say it’s the fault of the service company that selected them.
Ben Dowd, Onecom CEO explains: “SMEs are the lifeblood of the UK economy, and, as a medium sized business ourselves we clearly understand the landscape that sees them being held back by a lack of digital infrastructure. Our research shows that a dropped or disrupted internet signal can clearly have a significant and lasting impact for an SME and as more business is carried out online, strong connectivity is essential.”
Dowd continues: “As the current government puts support behind further investment in superfast fibre connections and key networks roll out 5G at a gathering pace, we are committing to taking a leading role in providing reliable and scalable solutions to transform the way SMEs work in terms of connectivity and telephony.”
