July 18, 2005 -- (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- UK hosting provider Fasthosts (fasthosts.com) announced on Monday that the results of a recent survey show almost three quarters of UK companies surveyed admitted to not submitting their Web sites to search engines.
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By ignoring search engine rankings, says Fasthosts, these businesses are failing to take full advantage of the Web. The survey suggested that 68 percent of companies may be missing out on potential sales since consumers use search engines as a first point of call to search for products and services.
In 2005, online sales are forecast to reach £19.6 billion - a 35 percent increase from last year's £14.5 billion, making up 7 percent of all retail spending, according to the Internet Advertising Bureau. Meanwhile, online spending in 2006 could see an even greater increase if trading outlets improve their visibility online.
"Companies that believe it?s enough to register a site and stick the Web address on business cards are naive. If you are not listed on Google or Yahoo!, your Web site might as well not be online," says Andrew Michael, CEO of Fasthosts. "The search engines are the first port of call for most of the consumers, and the higher the ranking the bigger the chance of a sell."
