What support do UK small businesses need? – I hear you ask…
Well, we have been asking that question for many years.
Since 2020, we have been carrying out what is probably one of the longest continual surveys of small businesses focussed on a single county in the UK. Our business triage service, has provided the insight we have needed to design, plan and deliver business support across Oxfordshire for Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership and the Oxfordshire City and District Councils.
The highest priority for small businesses, even through the challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic, has always been to ‘Grow my customer base’. The image shows that over the last 2 years that has been a priority for more than 50% of small businesses. But if we look beyond the top priority then the business needs have changed over the last few years. For instance, ‘Launching a new or different product’ used to be in the top 5, but now it is only in the plans for around 25% of small businesses. Engaging with overseas markets and ‘Exploring Options for Exporting’ has also dropped down the priority list.
‘We could have guessed that’ you may say, given what’s been going on in the economy and the effect that must be having on small business’s risk appetite. The thing is we don’t need to guess. We have been asking, we have been tracking and we know. If you would like to know what the priorities are that we have hidden or understand more about what support UK small businesses are saying they need then get in touch for a virtual coffee.