The Ready Response Network allows the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC) to consult small business owners and managers via regular online questionnaires, on topical issues of importance.

While this is not a formal survey process, the results from these polls act as an effective litmus test of the sentiment of the small business sector and enables the SBDC to "keep a finger on the pulse" regarding current and emerging issues.

1. Recent polls - Business Expectations Opinion Poll 2012
2. Dealing with Major Unexpected Events
3. Small Business Expectations 2011
4. Dispute Resolution – December 2010
5. Social Media for Business - August 2010
6. Federal Government's Paid Parental Leave Scheme - July 2010
7. Increasing Operating Expenses - June 2010
8. Small Business Issues and Concerns - April 2010
9. Small Business Expectations for 2010 - December 2009
10. How to join the Ready Response Network and participate in our polls

Dealing with Major Unexpected Events

April 2011

During April 2011, the SBDC’s Ready Response Network obtained small business opinions about dealing with major unexpected events, such as natural disasters, critical technical breakdowns and pandemics.

More than two-thirds (67%) of the respondents said they were not prepared or unsure if they were prepared for a major unexpected event. However, almost three-quarters (74%) agreed that planning for major unexpected events is either somewhat important or extremely important.

When asked how much time per year small businesses spend on preparing to deal with a major unexpected event, over half (56%) of the poll participants said less than 1 day per year, and only 7% said more than 7 days per year.

The types of activities that respondents were most likely to be involved in, in preparation for a major unexpected event included:

• Putting in place and/or testing computer systems and data back-up procedures (25% of responses);
• Checking the level and details of insurance policies (24% of responses);
• Installing and/or testing fire protection equipment (13% of responses); and
• Identifying an alternative/backup power source (12% of responses).

Almost a third (30%) of respondents revealed that their business had experienced a major unexpected event in the past 5 years, with more than a half of these businesses (56%) saying their business was interrupted between 1 and 7 days, and a quarter (25%) saying their business was interrupted for more than 7 days. When asked how much damage was caused, 31% said minor damage and 19% said major damage.

Back to top

Small Business Expectations 2011

January 2011

The annual Small Business Expectations opinion poll for 2011 was conducted in January this year. Overall, small business confidence levels appear slightly down from last year, with 48 percent of respondents saying they expect the economy to impact their business positively during the next 12 months, compared to 65 percent in 2010.

Similarly, the percentage of respondents who have a positive outlook on turnover for 2011 decreased by 8 percent, with 68 percent saying they expect sales or revenue to increase over the next year.

However, expectations about profitability remained steady, with 54 percent of respondents indicating they expect their profit to increase in 2011 (compared to 52 percent in 2010).

The opinion poll also showed that in 2011, staffing issues are once again likely to be a challenge:

• 70 percent of respondents said finding suitably qualified staff will be more challenging in 2011, compared to 41 percent in 2010; and
• 50 percent of respondents said retaining staff would be more challenging in 2011, compared to 23 percent in 2010.

 

The staffing issues opinions are similar to what small businesses expected in 2008, when 71percent indicated they expect finding suitably qualified staff to be more difficult and 49percent indicated it would be more difficult to retain staff.

According to the current opinion poll, the top challenges for 2011 will be:

• Attracting new customers (19%);
• Increasing costs (including transport costs) (13%);
• Cash flow management (13%); and
• Achieving and managing growth (11%).

 

Worth noting is that in 2010, ‘Red Tape’ (31% of responses) was the third biggest challenge on the list, compared to 2011, where Red Tape only came in at number 7, with 6% of responses indicating this would be a challenge in the coming year.

Back to top

Dispute Resolution Opinion Poll Results

December 2010

In December 2010, the SBDC’s Ready Response Network opinion poll focused on small business attitudes and experiences relating to the resolution of business-to-business disputes.

More than a third of the respondents (36%) said they had been involved in a dispute in the last five years. Of these:

• 48% said the dispute was with another business;
• 20% said the dispute was with a landlord / real estate agent;
• 16% said the dispute was with a franchisor or franchisee; and
• 16% said the dispute was with other parties (such as customers and government departments).

The majority of these respondents (68%) initiated the dispute themselves, with 60% obtaining further advice or information in relation to dealing with the dispute.  Less than a third (28%) resolved their dispute by communicating directly with the other party while 8% took no further action.

When asked where advice or information was obtained, 41% indicated from legal practitioners and 15% from business or industry associations. Seven per cent of respondents that had been involved in a dispute obtained advice from the SBDC or a Small Business Centre.

Of those involved in a dispute, 40% attempted alternative dispute resolution (ADR), though 60% would consider using ADR services in the future.

Respondents who had not been involved in a dispute in the last five years, or who did not obtain any advice previously if they had been party to a dispute, were asked where they would most likely obtain advice or further information, if they did become involved in a business dispute in the future. Respondents indicated:

• legal practitioners (31%);
• the SBDC or Small Business Centres (17%);
• the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (10%);
• business or industry associations (9%);
• accountants (9%);
• the Department of Commerce (6%);
• business advisors (6%); and
• other (14%).

Of the 64% of respondents who had not been involved in dispute in the last five years, 59% said they would consider using ADR services in the future should they become involved in a dispute. Almost a third (30%) was not sure and only 7% said they would not attempt ADR in future.

 

Back to top

Social Media for Business

August 2010

In August 2010 the Ready Response Network gauged small business operators’ opinions about social media and whether they were using social media as a business tool.

While 82% of respondents said they had a business website, only 35% were using social media as a business tool. For those using social media, Facebook was the most popular social media tool with 89% of respondents indicating they used it. LinkedIn was being used by 68% of respondents, while and 52% said they used Twitter for business purposes.

Respondents were asked what their main business purpose for using social media was and the three main reasons given were:

• increasing brand awareness (34%);
• networking (25%); and
• driving traffic to their business website (20%).

Half of all respondents who use social media for business purposes indicated they accessed it 2 - 6 times per week. A further 23% used it less than once a week. No one indicated (confessed) that they were using social media for more than two hours daily!

Overall, 50% of respondents using social media for their business believed it had resulted in tangible benefits for their business; while 41% were unsure; and the remaining 9% said they had not seen any tangible benefits. Some of the benefits outlined by respondents included:

• increased sales;
• increased enquiries; and
• an increase in new contacts.

Of those respondents who said they were not currently using social media for their business, 29% said that primarily this was because they did not believe it to be relevant to their business, 24% said they were unfamiliar with how social media works, and 17% said they did not see the benefits of using it.

Finally, when respondents were asked if they would use social media in the future, 27% indicated they would, 44% were unsure and 29% said no.

Back to top

Federal Government's Paid Parental Leave Scheme

July 2010

In July 2010 the Ready Response Network gauged small business opinions about the Federal Government’s Paid Parental Leave scheme (PPL scheme), commencing on 1 January 2011.

Almost three-quarters of respondents described their level of knowledge about the PPL scheme as “basic”, while a further 24% described it as “intermediate”.

When asked how easily business systems would cope with meeting new employer obligations under the PPL scheme, approximately a third (34%) of respondents said a significant amount of effort will be required to change systems in order to comply. A further 28% said a moderate amount of effort will be required, while 23% were unsure and 15% said their systems would cope easily.

Opinions on whether employees are more likely to stay connected to a business as a result of businesses forwarding the PPL payments were also divided:

• 30% said they believed employees are more likely to return to their business as a result of these arrangements;
• 34% said they did not believe employees were more likely to return to their business as a result of these arrangements; and
• 36% said they were unsure.

Overall, over 40% of respondents think the impact of the PPL scheme on their small businesses will be negative. This compares with 11%, barely one in ten respondents, saying the overall impact will be positive, 25% saying the scheme will have no impact and 23% being unsure of its impact on their business.

For more information about the Federal Government’s Paid Parental Leave scheme, including new employer obligations, visit the Family Assistance Office.

Increasing Operating Expenses

June 2010

In June 2010, our Ready Response Network opinion poll focused on a previously identified key concern to small businesses - increasing operating expenses (such as rent, wages, utility charges and interest rates).

The poll showed that over the next 12 months, nearly all respondents (95%) expect an increase in operating expenses. The poll also revealed that more than 50% predict business activity will increase and 62% believe net profit will increase or stay the same during this period.

Level of expected increases

Of those who expect operating expenses to increase, almost 90% anticipate an increase of up to 20%. The poll also indicated that 3% of respondents expect an increase of more than 50%. The graph below outlines the results in more detail:

 

 

Strategies to deal with the Issue

According to the poll, the top three ways in which small businesses are most likely to deal with increasing operating expenses are to:

• Increase the number of sales (32%);
• Increase the price of goods or services (27%); and
• Reduce operating expenses (e.g. reducing consumption or staff hours) (21%).

As the graph below shows, more than 1 in 7 respondents (15%) believe they have no option but to absorb the increased operating expenses, which could be one reason why 26% indicated they expect their net profit to decrease over the next 12 months.

 

 

Overall summary

While many small businesses expect a large increase in operating expenses over the next 12 months, most are planning to implement positive strategies to deal with this issue.

Increasing operating expenses might also explain the decrease in the number of small businesses expecting positive net profit results during the next year. Around 60% of opinion poll respondents expect net profit to increase or stay the same over the coming 12 months. This compares to 80% of respondents who said they anticipate net profit to increase or stay the same during 2010, according to the SBDC's Annual Business Expectation opinion poll conducted in December 2009.

 

Back to top

Small business issues and concerns

April 2010

This April 2010 Ready Response Network poll asked respondents about the key issues facing their businesses, and what the Government could do to help.

The poll indicated that the number one concern for small business operators (21 per cent of responses) was local and international market conditions. Respondents were concerned about general market conditions and unpredictable consumer spending making staff and business planning difficult.

Attracting and retaining skilled and unskilled staff was the second key issue, with 16 per cent of responses indicating this was a concern.

Eleven per cent of responses identified dealing with red tape as an issue. Other key issues and concerns raised in the poll included:

• Increasing operating costs (10 %);
• Strategic and operational business planning difficulties (9 %);
• Access to and the cost of finance (9 %); and
• Cash flow concerns (8%).

The full results of this opinion poll are outlined in the graphic below.

 

 

How Government can help

The poll suggested a number of ways in which Government could help address some of these small business issues and concerns.

The most popular suggestion (17 per cent of responses) related to providing small business tax incentives.

Further suggestions included:

• Reducing Red Tape (13 %);
• Changes to State and Federal Government policy, e.g. economic, education, health, migration (12 %);
• Providing financial assistance, e.g. loans and grants, funding operating expenses (10 %);
• Changes to employment legislation (7%);
• Providing general business assistance and advice (6 %);
• Assisting small businesses with skills development and training (5%);
• Investing in infrastructure and innovation to support small business growth (5%); and
• Advocating on behalf of small businesses on interest rates and bank fees (4%).

Several suggestions also provided solutions specific to individual businesses' concerns (ten per cent).

 

 

The SBDC would like to extend a big thank you to every respondent who participated in this opinion poll.

Back to top

Small business expectations for 2010

December 2009

This December 2009 Ready Response Network poll on Small Business Expectations for 2010, revealed that business confidence levels had improved significantly since the previous year's poll.

Small business respondents were more upbeat about revenue and sales, profitability and selling price expectations compared to the previous year. However, there was an expectation of higher staffing costs and challenges in finding new staff.

Overall, the majority of respondents were expecting economic conditions to have a positive impact on their business over the next 12 months, a distinct improvement from last year's poll.

Other key findings

• 76 per cent expect sales and revenue to increase in 2010, (compared to 39 per cent in 2009).
• 61 per cent expect their selling prices to increase in 2010, (compared to 49 per cent in 2009).
• 82 per cent expect their profitability to increase or stay the same in 2010, (up from 50 per cent previously).
• 71 per cent expect the cost of materials and supplies to increase in 2009, (up from 63 per cent previously).
• The majority of respondents are expecting challenges in finding new staff (29 per cent), while 41 per cent expect no change.

More than half of respondents (55 per cent) expected the cost of employing staff to increase in 2010, compared to 31 per cent in 2009. This is still below results in 2008. In terms of making significant changes to their businesses, 55 per cent indicated they intended to explore new markets in 2010, with 35 per cent looking to employ more staff. Almost a quarter (24 per cent) of respondents were considering updating existing equipment or technology, while a similar number were not intending to make any changes in 2010.

The six top challenges expected by business operators in 2010

• attracting new customers (39 per cent);
• cash flow management (39 per cent);
• red tape (31 per cent);
• increasing costs (including transport costs) (27 per cent);
• achieving/managing growth (27 per cent); and
• interest rates (20 per cent).

This list of challenges indicates the small business sector was generally more upbeat than at the same time last year. In the 2009 poll the top two challenges were a decline in consumer confidence (36 per cent) and a reduction in sales/bookings (31 per cent).

Back to top

To find out more about the Network

If you would like to know more about the Ready Response Network, please contact:

Policy, Planning and Stakeholder Relations
Small Business Development Corporation
Email readyresponse@smallbusiness.wa.gov.au
Telephone 131 BIZ (131 249)

Back to top