2013 was a good year for U.S. small businesses in many ways, but concerns about an even stronger 2014 are now in focus, especially in light of the lingering – and some say worsening – economic challenges of our time.
“Small businesses must be resourceful to stay afloat,” says Tracey Wallace in a report published on Mashable.
“With smaller budgets, big ideas need to be as proactive as they are cost-efficient, taking into account everything from consistent industry changes, cash flow, customer needs and the unexpected challenges you never saw coming,” Wallace adds. “Multitasking to keep up with the big guys on a fraction of the budget is why small businesses have become notorious for bootstrapping, and being creative about their approach to staying competitive.”
All told, the challenges of running a business today are enough to make most entrepreneurs daydream of finding a genie lamp to provide three wishes.
Consistent with the findings of a new small-business trends study by OnDeck Capital, if small-business owners were given three wishes, they would likely request improved access to capital, help growing sales and a simplified tax code.
“Despite strong demand for financing, small businesses are struggling to secure the capital they require to grow,” says Noah Breslow, chief executive officer of OnDeck.
For the report, OnDeck looked at data from a survey of some 5,000 business owners and loan applications from another 10,000 entrepreneurs across 700 industries.
A report summary and corresponding infographic were published this week by PayAnywhere, a mobile payments company that is one of the nation’s leading solutions providers for small businesses.
“Despite frustration regarding these three aspects of business ownership, 73 percent of survey respondents reported being optimistic about their business prospects and expressed desire to grow their businesses,” a report summary posted on the PayAnywhere blog reads.
To learn more and to review the infographic, click here.
