Brick and mortar retailers are nearly invisible online, according to a report from Internet-Engine. Consumers overwhelmingly turn to online sources for information about local business, but those local businesses either are not online at all or have poor websites that don’t show up in search results. Physical retailers have a share of search results that is lower than both online retailers and manufacturers, meaning that it is very difficult for consumers to find products sold in physical retailers, particularly independent retailers.
Overall this result is not too surprising, since 56% of small businesses don’t even have a website. But, when 63% of consumers first turn to the web for information about local businesses, not having a well-promoted website is a marketing disaster.
C’mon folks. It isn’t that hard. You get have a website for your store in about 10 minutes.
