NSBA 2013 Small Business Technology Survey
The NSBA (National Small Business Association) recently surveyed a group of 845 varied small business owners regarding information on the types of technology that they use, how that technology is used, and the effects of cyber-crime on their business. Some of the results were astounding. A summary of the results is a follows:
Today, 74 percent of small business owners utilize a smart phone – up from 57 percent in 2010. Laptop usage since 2010 is at 84 percent – up from 67 percent in 2010.
There was a dramatic drop in the number of small business owners that utilize outside IT firms to manager the equipment and infrastructure. Part of this was due to the state of the economy, and part due to changes in the technology and software that makes doing this easier for non-technical people.
- There was a notable increase in the number of employers that allow their employees to telecommute. – up from 44 percent three years ago to 60 percent today.
- The majority of small businesses have a website, and one in five as a mobile website.
- The majority of small firms (66 percent) now maintain their website’s internally rather that relying on outside IT to do the work.
- Three years ago 53 percent of businesses said that they didn’t use social media, now that number is down to 37 percent.
- When it comes to facing technology challenges, the cost of needed upgrades, security, and the time required to fix problems, were the top three concerns for small business owners.
- Primarily, because of increased banking fees: companies have moved to third party payment services such as PayPal, and are increasingly accepting payments by Check, Money Order, and accepting banking transfers forms of payment for products and services.
- 94 percent of small business owners are very, or somewhat concerned, about cyber-security. Nearly 50 percent of them have been the victim of a cyber-attack. These attacks resulted in significant losses of time and service interruptions that typically cost these firms thousands of dollars. Among those whose banking accounts were hacked, the average losses were $6,927.50.
For more details on the above, here is a link to the full survey results: NSBA 2013 Technology Survey
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– John