Online payment methods lead to increased UK e-commerce spend

New research has shown that online payment methods have led to an increase in UK e-commerce spend by over 25% in the past two years.

The study, carried out by the UK Cards Association found that 1.3 billion purchases were made online in 2014, and in only two years this total increased by a massive 38% to reach 1.8 billion. On average, 150 million transactions per month are now made using online payment methods.

UK online card spend totalled £154 billion in 2016, with an average of £422 million spent on e-commerce websites each day. Consumers in the UK spend more money online per household than any country in the world, with British shoppers spending over £4,500 online in 2015.

The average transaction value of online purchases has also recently changed. In the past, consumers would use online payment methods to carry out higher value purchases over the internet. The average value has now dropped by £9, meaning that internet shopping is becoming more commonplace for everyday purchases.

One e-commerce sector seeing a huge growth in online sales is the clothing industry, with consumers now using the internet for nearly a quarter of all clothing transactions. Event tickets are also seeing a surge in the number of internet orders, with up to 67 per cent of ticket sales now made online.

Companies who don’t provide their customers with suitable online payment methods are missing out on extra income, with previous research showing that businesses without a website are missing out on up to £20,000 per year. If they started trading online, it would lead to a boost of £8.4bn per year to the UK economy!

Make sure that your business doesn’t miss out on profits by implement online payment methods for your customers. We provide cost-effective e-commerce solutions for small business owners, starting at less than £10 per month. Get in touch today to find out how online payments could help your business grow.