Small Business Study for B2B Marketers

Q3 2015

What makes small business owners and decision makers tick, and how can content marketers reach them with their marketing efforts?

Table of ContentsIntroduction 3

Key Takeaways 4

Business Owner Findings 5

Key Demographics 15

Spending Habits 17

Social Network Usage 22

Media Consumption 23

Conclusion 26

IntroductionStorylift is the world’s most targeted content distribution platform. The backbone of all we do is the hard science of market research that allows us to uncover the true attitudes and preferences of the audiences that make your business run.

We’re very excited to share our 2015 Small Business Owners and Decision Makers survey. Within, you will learn more about this unique group of individuals - their demographic and socioeconomic markers, attitudes about their business and new ways to reach them with your content marketing efforts.

We know that you spend valuable time and other resources trying to create content and information that will be useful and relevant to this demographic. We hope that this will help you make more informed decisions about your message and platforms where they can be engaged.

Key Takeaways• Advertising and marketing is harder then EVER: Their #1 concern about

their business was advertising and marketing followed closely by finding the right talent.

• Small Business Owners are an independent bunch: 76% of them said that they have not considered outsourcing administrative functions of their business.

• Major sporting events have to be the marketing mix: Comparing viewership rates to peers with similar age and gender mix they are over 200% more likely to tune in to major sporting events than the general population.

• Small Business Owners are recreationally active: 1 in 4 of them spend more than $100 per month going to events such as sports or concerts. Additionally, nearly 90% of this hard-working group report a regular monthly budget for sporting goods or outdoor equipment

The FindingsHere are the most interesting pieces of data we found from our 2015 Small Business Owners and Decision Makers Survey

Highlight

There is nearly one decision maker for every small business owner.

StatusSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: Do you own your own business or do you work in a senior management position at a small or medium-sized business?

ActionScale your marketing efforts by expanding beyond small

business owners and including their decision

makers.N=1,041

Highlight

35% of decision makers fall under an “Operations” role.

Role in BusinessSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: What is your role in the company?

ActionMessaging to decision makers

should be as specific as possible, but language and

content geared toward assisting more efficient operations will go a long way toward appealing to

this trusted audience.*Only showing responses for “decisions makers”N=635

Highlight

51.2% of small businesses in this study have fewer than 10 employees

Number of EmployeesSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: How many people does your company employ?

ActionHow does your offering help

small businesses “punch above their weight”? Can you help

them compete with companies that have more resources?

N=1,026

Highlight

25.5% of respondents reported revenues of less than $100k per

year.

Annual RevenuesSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: What is your best estimate of your company’s revenues over the next 12 months?

ActionWhat is your target client’s annual revenue? Consider

trends in your clientele and how to best cater to their needs at

each revenue level.N=1,006

Highlight

21.1% of respondents were recently approved for a new line of credit.

Recent Credit ApplicationSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: Have you applied for a business loan, credit card, or line of credit in the past 12 months?

ActionHow does your offering or

solution cater to the concerns and needs inherent to having

recently borrowed money? What assurances can you give to

businesses that have taken out a loan recently?N=977

Highlight

Only 10.5% of respondents showed intent to take out a loan in the next

12 months.

Credit Application Next 12 mo.Survey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: Do you anticipate applying for a business loan, credit card, or line of credit in the next 12 months?

ActionAlthough a relatively low number of respondents

indicated intent to take on a new loan or line of credit, few

business owners expect to need credit or new funding.

N=956

Highlight

Advertising and Marketing (or lack thereof) are the largest sources of concern for small business owners

and decision makers.

Concerns About BusinessSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: Which of the following are sources of concern for your business?

ActionAre you making the case for why business

owners should be concerned about the need your offering addresses? By doing so,

you can garner awareness and create demand for your client via a solid content

marketing strategy. Or perhaps more importantly, can you help this audience

focus on what THEY are most concerned about?

N=864

Access to credit

Finding investors

Advertising &Marketing

Lead Generation Process

Resources for finding good employees

Finance, accounting, & admin take up

too much time

Highlight

7% of small businesses have outsourced or considered outsourcing advertising.

Consider Outsourcing FunctionsSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: Have you ever outsourced or are you considering outsourcing any of the following functions?

ActionAs it becomes simpler and more cost

effective to outsource business services to third parties, there will be a stronger need to differentiate your offering from other competitive services. Also, given

the relatively low numbers of people who consider outsourcing, have you

clearly stated your value proposition?N=855

Highlight

49% of business owners and decision makers fall in the 45-64

year old range

AgeSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Age (Determined via Facebook API)

ActionAre you taking into account generational proclivities and attitudes in the way you talk

about your offerings?

N=1,041

Highlight

Small business owner/decision maker group are almost 3x more likely to make over $75k than the

general population.

Household IncomeSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: What is your total household income before taxes?

ActionThis audience is a much more

affluent group – are your clients taking into consideration the language and concerns that come with a more affluent

audience.N=1,041

Highlight

Nearly 90% of the small business owner/decision maker group self

reports a regular spend in this category.

Sporting Goods/Outdoors SpendSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: On average, how much do you (or your household’s buyer) spend per MONTH on sporting goods/outdoors equipment?

ActionThis audience has a knack for

adventure – are there publications, events of topics that you can reasonably write

about or sponsor in the sports/outdoors space to reach

this valuable audience?N=1,041

Highlight

More than 1 out of 4 business owners and decision makers spend $100+ monthly on going to concerts

and events.

Concert/Sports/Events SpendSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: On average, how much do you (or your household’s buyer) spend per MONTH on concert and events?

ActionWhat do you know about the

interested of your target audience? Are there events or

concerts that you could sponsor to attract more of this audience

to your brand?N=1,041

Highlight

7 out of 10 of this audience give $100+ per year to charities

Charitable ContributionsSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: On average, how much do you (or your household’s buyer) spend per YEAR on charitable donations?

ActionHow can your client tastefully

highlight the causes they support to this audience that so

clearly values the work of charities?

N=1,041

Highlight

Small business owners and decision makers are nearly 2x as likely to

spend $500+ per year on vacation travel.

Vacation TravelSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: On average, how much do you (or your household’s buyer) spend per YEAR on vacation travel?

ActionDoes your client’s offering make

it easier for this audience to “unplug” and travel? Consider

ways to appeal to this audience’s desire to travel for

vacation and get away from the day-to-day grind of small

business life.N=1,041

Highlight

Business travel is an inevitable feature of small business life, and

this audience spends more on business travel than the general

populace.

Business TravelSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: On average, how much do you (or your household’s buyer) spend per YEAR on business travel?

ActionThis audience not only has to travel for business, but they

have to pay for it as well. How is your offering making life

easier for the small business owner who is constantly on the

go?N=1,041

Highlight

Unsurprisingly, LinkedIn usage is much higher for business owners and decision makers than general

population.

Social Network UsageSurvey Takers: Small Business Owners or Decision Makers

Question: In addition to Facebook, which social media platforms do you use on a regular basis?

ActionAll respondents for this survey

have Facebook accounts. LinkedIn remains a crucial

testing ground for this audience given their likelihood to have

active accounts.N=1,041

Media Consumption – Network TVHow does this audience consumer media relative to their peer group?

Female business owners are more likely to be watching Modern Family and Big Bang Theory while male business owners are 197% more likely to watch Shark Tank.The average peer group index is 100. Therefore, an index of 153 would mean the report audience is 53% more likely to consume that media while a 72 would mean that they are only 72% as likely as the average.

Media Consumption – EventsHow does this audience consumer media relative to their peer group?

Female business owners over index slightly for the Daytona 500 and the Kentucky Derby, while male business owners’ viewing of The Masters if off the charts.The average peer group index is 100. Therefore, an index of 153 would mean the report audience is 53% more likely to consume that media while a 72 would mean that they are only 72% as likely as the average.

Media Consumption – Digital MediaHow does this audience consumer media relative to their peer group?

You’ll want to make sure you’re on Pinterest to reach female business owners. Male business owners, however, show a proclivity for Android devices and mobile entertainment.

The average peer group index is 100. Therefore, an index of 153 would mean the report audience is 53% more likely to consume that media while a 72 would mean that they are only 72% as likely as the average.

Now What?Throughout this presentation the question, “What actions can I take based off of this information?” may have come to mind.

With Storylift, taking action based on this data couldn’t be simpler. We have the ability to build target audiences of small business owners and/or decision makers who have any of the characteristics determined by this research study.

How else can we help? Contact us today if you would like more information about this survey and how it can help you build an effective distribution strategy to reach small businesses.

Sales & General InquiriesEbonn Twilley

ebonn@storylift.com