Small business owners often struggle with limited resources and with deciding how best to use their cash flow. Faced with what has become the COVID-19 endemic, we decided to run a survey to determine the most pressing issues for small- to medium-sized business owners. These challenges were grouped into two categories: 1) marketing and 2) financial/operational.
Integrated Marketing Needs
1,118 respondents made 3,251 selections that told us that their top six greatest marketing pain points, in order of significance, include:
Public relations management ( i.e., timely press releases, a ready-to-send media kit, etc.)
Email marketing (i.e., regular newsletters, automatic replies, etc.)
With uncertainties about the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is no surprise that online presence, reputation, and brand management are top of mind for many business owners.
Financial & Operational Pain Points
When asked about the greatest financial and operations challenges faced by small businesses, 1,114 survey respondents made 2,847 selections that resulted in the following ranking:
Supply chain and inventory management
Project management
Professional services management (i.e., human resources, IT, legal, accounting, etc.)
Cost analysis and pricing
The most pressing challenge identified by small business owners, supply chain and inventory management, does not come as a surprise. Key industries face labor shortages and material shortages at the same time that logistics costs are increasing. The Economist recently reported a significant price increase in container shipping, which is usually the cheapest mode of transportation, and they didn't expect prices to decline again soon in 2022.
The ability to source product at the right time - and price - directly impacts cash flow and profitability, which explains why the survey respondents seem keen to focus on their bottom line. Product shortages experienced since 2020 have affected both the service industry (e.g., hospitality, food and beverage, healthcare) and the retail industry (e.g., automotive, cycling, sporting goods).
Timeline to Resolve: Now
Responses to the final question about the timeline to resolve these pain points indicated that time is of the essence and that these challenges are pressing.
75% of 1,093 respondents said that they wanted to address these challenges within the next 6 months. 41% of those surveyed indicated that they wanted improvements within the next 3 months.
Hiring a Consulting Agency
Businesses often hire external consultants to provide expertise that they don’t have in-house (or on staff). When hiring a consultant, ensure there is an agreement and a system in place to track the results of the consultant's plan, as you implement it. There should be "actionable, observable outcomes that you can clearly see impact your profits and bottom line."
Because hiring a consultancy is a common practice, we asked the respondents the following question in the survey: "What made working with a consulting agency in the past either a positive or negative experience?"
Respondents noted that characteristics such as professionalism, timeliness, relevance, trustworthiness, integrity, and cost are key to a positive experience working with a consulting firm.
Here is a sample of anonymous responses we thought were worth reposting:
"The consulting agency is neutral when looking at problems. It can look at the enterprise [from the outside] and not be affected by the enterprise's atmosphere and shareholders' interests."
"Beyond their expertise and experience with a particular issue, consultants can offer some advantages over permanent staff. First, they can bring objectivity to an organization. Their fresh thinking can help… restart projects that have lost momentum or… become bogged down by infighting. Second, consultants can focus on one project or issue. This is because they're not weighed down [by] other responsibilities, as in-house managers can be. This can bring clarity to a project, especially when a deadline is looming."
"Sometimes marketing is hard because you're spending your energy the wrong way. Build templates for all of your marketing and sales processes so that you rarely have to start from scratch. Not only do they save you time, they also make sure you keep your resources focused on your goals."
"The consultation was completed, and they followed up on the completeness of the consultation within six months. Fantastic."
"Adaptability; diversity; dynamic; controllable."
"The rapid development of an enterprise cannot be separated from the support of the consulting company, which is the teacher of the enterprise."
Christie Solomon, MBA, established Elevate Next Business Consulting with more than ten years of broad experience in corporate operations, marketing, and administration. Contact me today to schedule a complimentary session to see how we can help you position your company to achieve the next level of growth!
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