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CyNexLink Blog • October 10, 2017
Many surmise that when an individual starts their own business and can set their own rules, their troubles will disappear. However, the converse is usually true, and small business leaders have their own set of nightmares that keep them up at night.
There are basic worries that plague the minds of small business owners. A survey of more than 1,100 small businesses by Wasp Barcode Technologies produced a State of Small Business report that delineates the essential challenges of small businesses.
It identified increasing profit, employee healthcare and cash flow as some of these challenges.
Yet, Greg Petraetis of Smallbizdaily says some of the emerging worries to antagonize the minds of small business owners will be customer retention, cyber attacks and smart cultural branding.
Customer Retention
Retaining a stable customer base is essential to the desirable functioning of a small business. Customer retention increases profits and as the technological realm evolves, competition will increase as new entrepreneurs and ideas are enabled, making customer retention all the more important.
Yet, there are a variety of ways to retain customers. As an example, Spotify used Facebook to engage its customers while promoting its services and Dropbox gave users free data as a gift for providing written feedback. This ability to engage existing customers requires an awareness and ability to adapt to their needs and desires. Small business owners should be aware that there is ever-changing technologies that aid in the understanding of a customer base through data analysis.
Cyber Attacks
Small business owners aren’t particularly concerned with cyber attacks as it ranks way down at number 51 out of 75 possible business concerns, according to the National Federation of Independent Business. But computer security will soon line up along estate tax and electricity costs at the forefront of small business owners’ concerns, as 60% of all targeted cyber attacks in 2014 affected small- or medium-sized businesses.
Couple this with the fact that the average price for a small business to repair the damages of a cyber attack are about $690,000, and its clear that owners will have to pay heed to the beast on the horizon.
Branding
Defining the right brand and culture of a small business is a primary concern for leaders. It determines how your business will be perceived by customers and its reputation. More than ever, the culture of a brand is playing a role in how customers make their purchasing decisions. Especially with young adults, the values of a brand are seen as an extension of the individual, as a way of expressing oneself. Clearly, it’s important for business leaders to pay attention to the cultural values of whatever customer base they are targeting. Businesses that are known to conduct their workplace in an “inclusive” or “environmentally responsible” manner already reap financial benefits.
Next Steps to Take
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