FreshNetworks Blog

Can you quantify the benefits of people being online? We think you can. Our sister firm, FreshMinds Research, published a report with UK online centres last month which looked at how you would start to build an economic case for digital inclusion. The report is available to download in full here, but the summary findings are as follows:

What’s the benefit to individuals?

• Save both time and money - access to greater information and an increased choice of places to purchase
• Improved educational attainment - more effective learning and access to more motivating materials
• Increased salary prospects - e-learning and computer literacy increase employability and promotion. Salaries are an average of 3%-10% higher if you are online
• Greater satisfaction with public services - increased flexibility, convenience of access and overall higher standards of service

What’s the benefit to the government?

• Cost savings and increased efficiency and productivity - increasing use of online public services allows the government to concentrate it’s efforts elsewhere. One NHS initiative is expected to save the UK government £68 million in 2008

What’s the benefit to the private sector?

• Greater efficiency and productivity - employees using internet based applications to process work more efficiently
• More sales opportunities - using new technologies to reach customers more efficiently
• Increased demand for ICT products and services - more access and use of the internet will drive demand

What’s the benefit to society?

• Less social exclusion - involving members of marginalised groups in mainstream society activities
• Increased civic participation - providing wider opportunities for self expression for citizens
• Enhanced working and natural environment - fostering a more stimulating working environment as well as flexible and remote working practices

What’s the benefit to the wider economy?

• Increased demand for the ICT industry - driving further innovation and efficiency gains
• Greater UK competitiveness - attracting inward investment
• Increased GDP growth rate - enabling further investment in research and development, which will feed back into a virtuous circle of GDP growth and technological development. This would be upwards of 1.54% growth in GDP over three years

Some interesting thoughts here. The full report contains more detail and theory behind each of these so give it a read if you’re interested.