Number of new Irish websites jump by 26% in response to Covid-19 restrictions
The number of new Ireland-based websites jumped by 26% in the first six months of the year, according to figures published by IE Domain Registry.
In its latest Domain Profile Report, a total of 33,286 new .ie domains were registered from January to June. More than 40% of new registrations in Ireland happened in the two months of May and June, as businesses reacted to the Covid-19 closures.
IE Domain Registry said the increase suggests that more businesses in Ireland have gone online since the lockdown to maintain their revenue streams, stay in contact with customers, and expand into new markets.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has had a noticeable effect on new .ie registrations across virtually the entire country,” said David Curtin, chief executive of IE Domain Registry. “Thirty-one of the island’s 32 counties recorded an increase in the first six months of 2020.”
According to Richard Spence from Digital Salon, this increase in websites is evident across the Irish hair and beauty industry. “Over the past few years we estimated that approximately 30% of salons had a website. Many were slow to make the move online, mostly fuelled by a lack of time to get one organised, and due to the cost of it. I think also there was a lack of understanding as to what a website could do for their businesses. We would often hear salons say 'I have a Facebook page, so I don't need a website’.”
The Covid-19 pandemic caused a shift, he noted. “We are certainly seeing a huge number of salons now make the move online. During the lockdown, salons had two things that typically made it hard before then to commit to getting online. They had time, as their salons were closed, and they also had money, as the Government introduced the Trading Online Voucher of up to €2,500 to help small businesses get online.
“Salons without a website, and without any income during Covid, saw how well salons that had online shops were doing. Prior to Covid, a small proportion of salons would also ask us to build an online shop. Now every request for a website we get, there is also a request for the shop element, as salons now understand how much it can add to their business, and how their business can make money for them while they are closed.”
“Having an online presence means that these businesses can stay in contact with their customers, build on their relationships, and, most important of all, continue to sell to them through an online store, click-and-collect service, or voucher booking system,” said Curtain.
“Irish SMEs’ ability to cater to consumer choice and comfort, by providing both an online experience and an in-store shopping experience, will be key to the country’s economic recovery in 2020 and beyond.”
