More folks in the UK are selling goods or skills online to make some extra cash, according to a new piece of research.
The survey of 1,000 adults in the UK commissioned by ePages showed that no less than 44% said they’ve earned extra money by selling goods or skills online – 54% if you look at the 25 to 34-years-old bracket – and 30% said they expect to do this on a regular basis going forward.
Furthermore, 36% said they would ‘consider trying’ online retail as an activity, and one in five felt that selling online was a way to achieve a better work/life balance (presumably the extra cash helps in terms of ensuring a bit more life, and a little less work).
When asked about running an online shop and/or a bricks-and-mortar store, 50% said they’d prefer to run just an online outfit, and only 10% wanted to run solely a high street shop. 27% said they’d do both (and presumably the remaining percentage didn’t commit).
Path to retail success
Most felt that an online store was the best way to sell the most goods – 43% of those surveyed in fact, compared to 39% who viewed both an online and physical shop as the best option to generate the most sales.
And when asked whether they felt that setting up an online store was a possibility within their reach, 54% of respondents said they believed this was ‘achievable’, and 16% even felt it would be easy.
Wilfried Beeck, CEO of ePages, commented: “The survey suggests a high participation level – today a large proportion of Britons are both keen and confident to become online merchants whenever the need arises.
“Affordable cloud-driven software, popular online marketplaces and easy payment methods have done a remarkable job of democratising retail – enabling any level of computer user to advertise, communicate and transact online”.
