Blog

Effect of Superfast Broadband on our buying behaviour

The rollout of superfast Broadband in the UK, is likely to change how we shop forever This is according to new research conducted for Royal Mail, which found that when the current rollout of high-speed technology is complete, this could be responsible for an increase of up to £740 million in consumer online spending.

It added that since taking up superfast broadband, British shoppers have already increased their annual spending by £225 million. This equates to an increase in spending of 3.1 per cent, or £23 a year, per superfast broadband user.

However, this figure is even higher in Scotland (5.1 per cent) Royal Mail suggested that lower population densities in rural Scotland makes buying online more convenient than travelling longer distances to shopping districts.

 What’s more the research suggests this figure is in line for further significant expansion, hitting as much as £740m by 2017, when as much as 95 per cent of the population are expected to be accessing faster broadband speeds – up from just 1m homes and businesses which can access such services today. The uptick is particularly stark in Edinburgh which has seen the biggest increase in online spend of any UK city since superfast broadband was rolled out, splashing out an additional £4.4m overall. The Scottish capital was closely followed by Birmingham in the stats with Glasgow rounding out the top three.

On an individual level each broadband user now spends an average of £23 a year more online courtesy of its ease and convenience.

Businesses in Scotland are more likely to order goods online and have them delivered and this is expected to soar as Royal Mail vows to improve their flexibility and increase the options delivery recipients have.

To see if your business is eligible for superfast broadband please contact us and have your postcode and landline number ready.