Most Irish businesses have website but only 40% conduct sales online – CSO

More than four in five Irish-based businesses have a website but only 40 per cent actually sell online, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

CSO figures show that while 82 per cent of enterprises in the Republic had some sort of web portal in 2021, up from 79 per cent in 2020, the website, in most cases, just provided social media links.

The most common facility provided by a business on their website or homepage were links to references to their social media profiles (43 per cent) followed by a facility to access online ordering or reservations (27 per cent).

The CSO found 40 per cent of enterprises conducted sales electronically in 2021. The most common source of online orders was from customers based in Ireland, it said.

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"The Covid-19 pandemic has made enterprises across Ireland change how they do business," CSO statistician Colin Hanley said.

Some 10 per cent have set up a website to facilitate online sales while 18 per cent provided a click & collect service, he said.

Almost one in five (19 per cent) have indicated that they have seen an increase in sales through websites or apps.

One in twelve (8 per cent) enterprises use artificial intelligence (AI) in their business with machine learning being the most common AI use.