The following are some facts and stats that may surprise you, and even if not, they are valuable pieces of information that will give entrepreneurs a better understanding of how to approach running and organizing their business.
What is considered a “small business”?
“The SBA Office of Advocacy defines a small business for research purposes as an independent business having fewer than 500 employees.” (U.S. Small Business Administration)
Funding & Finance
“82% of business failures are due to poor cash management.” (U.S. Bank)
“Roughly 7% of all startup capital is derived from credit cards.” (SBA)
“Women are 30% more likely than males to start businesses without seeking financing, and only half as likely to obtain business loans from banks.” (SBA)
Direct Mail Marketing
“A total of more than 150 million direct mail promotions were sent out in 2015. 42% of recipients read or scanned the mail pieces.” (Small Business Trends)
“56% of customers find print marketing to be the most trustworthy type of marketing.” (Small Business Trends)
“Brand recall was 70% higher among participants who were exposed to direct mail ads rather than to digital ones.” (Small Business Trends)
Stress Management
“Small business owners report that managing their business is more than 4 times more stressful than raising children.” (Bank of America)
“In an effort to achieve a work-life balance, 72% of small business owners say that they don’t check their mobile device while eating with others.” (Bank of America)
Website Design
“48% of people cited a website’s design as the #1 factor in deciding the credibility of a business.” (Blue Corona)
“47% of people expect a web page to load in 2 seconds or less.” (Blue Corona)
“44% of website visitors will leave a company’s website if there’s no contact information or phone number.” (Blue Corona)
“Mobile devices now account for nearly 2 of every 3 minutes spent online.” (Blue Corona)
Ecommerce
“84% of shoppers prefer to browse products online before purchasing.” (Host Advice)
“51% of people in the U.S. say that slow load speeds are the #1 reason they abandon a purchase.” (Host Advice)
“Global ecommerce sales is expected to surpass $638 billion in the U.S. by 2018 on mobile devices alone.” (Host Advice)
SOURCES:
1. U.S. Small Business Administration, https://www.sba.gov/advocacy/firm-size-data
2. Fundera, https://www.fundera.com/blog/small-business-statistics
3. U.S. Small Business Administration, https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2014_Finance_FAQ.pdf
4. Small Business Trends, https://smallbiztrends.com/2017/01/direct-mail-marketing-statistics.html
5. Bank of America, http://newsroom.bankofamerica.com/files/press_kit/additional/Small_Business_Owner_Report_-_Spring_2017.pdf
6. Blue Corona, https://www.bluecorona.com/blog/20-web-design-facts-small-business-owners/
7. Host Advice, https://hostadvice.com/blog/ecommerce-statistics-facts-figures/
Stephanie
Stephanie is the Marketing Director at Talkroute and has been featured in Forbes, Inc, and Entrepreneur as a leading authority on business and telecommunications.
Stephanie is also the chief editor and contributing author for the Talkroute blog helping more than 100k entrepreneurs to start, run, and grow their businesses.