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August 27, 2012 at 12:26 am #979551Up::0
Hi all
I’m looking for some research online that will help me with my new business which is dedicated to helping small business owners understand their business information (stats etc), save time doing so and make better decisions as a result.
I’ve looked around online including the Flying Solo survey results and other places and I haven’t really found a lot of info.
I’m thinking perhaps doing my own survey but before I do, does anyone have any suggestions where I might find this stuff? I’m interested in things like:
- How much time small business owners spend looking at their stats (financial reports, web stats, social media stats etc)
- Whether small business owners know key stats about their business (customer value, top customers, top converting marketing channels etc)
- Any information that provides a link between companies that do regularly look at their numbers and as a result enjoy better results
I’ve found a few useful stats here and there but I’m looking for more specific results.
Thanks for anyone who can help with this. If I can’t find anything solid already I’ll run my own survey, but I’d rather not take up people’s time if the info is out there.
Dan
August 27, 2012 at 1:14 am #1115145Up::0Hi Dan
If you are looking at a performance management solution then perhaps consider including the “balanced scorecard” process. Its well founded and there is plenty of material explaining its use. Balanced Scorecard moves away from traditional pure “financial” metrics management and includes three other pillars. They are customer metrics, internal process metrics and people / learning metrics. The four together are far more comprehensive for performance management and the following may give you an idea of what works well http://mystrategicplan.com/
In my experience software solutions are fantastic but it’s really important that the underlying methodology works effectively (which is why I recommend you consider including something like balanced scorecard). If an SME doesn’t understand how to set and analyse the right metrics then all the software in the world won’t help.
Helping build better businesses and better lives with expert financial and taxation advice. info@360partners.com.au www.360partners.com.au 03 9005 4900August 27, 2012 at 1:16 am #1115146Up::0I know big business does a lot with their data to produce business intelligence.
Small business… don’t know, could be a good market, not much out there apart from the output of accounting software.
IBM make a big deal out of business intelligence, haven’t looked at their site in a long while but they used to produce a lot of white papers and stats on stuff like that, might be worth a quick look.
August 27, 2012 at 8:55 am #1115147Up::0websitedesigner, post: 129168 wrote:Hi allI’m looking for some research online that will help me with my new business which is dedicated to helping small business owners understand their business information (stats etc), save time doing so and make better decisions as a result.
I’ve looked around online including the Flying Solo survey results and other places and I haven’t really found a lot of info.
I’m thinking perhaps doing my own survey but before I do, does anyone have any suggestions where I might find this stuff? I’m interested in things like:
- How much time small business owners spend looking at their stats (financial reports, web stats, social media stats etc)
- Whether small business owners know key stats about their business (customer value, top customers, top converting marketing channels etc)
- Any information that provides a link between companies that do regularly look at their numbers and as a result enjoy better results
I’ve found a few useful stats here and there but I’m looking for more specific results.
Thanks for anyone who can help with this. If I can’t find anything solid already I’ll run my own survey, but I’d rather not take up people’s time if the info is out there.
Dan
I think it’s a huge market. The fact that many owners are looking for free CRM and analytics tools suggests that many know what stats they need. Their problem is how to get and process data.August 29, 2012 at 10:25 am #1115148Up::0Hi guys thanks for the replies so far.
The post here really is not so much about the product or whether there is a market for it. I’m going to use my launch to validate that. What I’m specifically interested in, is whether there is research out there that contain bits of information that I can use in my launch copy.
To give you some examples. A few things that I have found are things like:
- This mashable article mentions that time is the most valuable asset to a small business owner – I can use this in my copy because my app saves time.
- This intuit 2020 report mentions “The amount of digital data being produced today is growing exponentially. Those who become proficient in collecting, managing and analyzing this information will gain competitive advantage.” I can use this because my app helps people do exactly that.
These are the kind of things I’m looking for but specifically around how much time SME’s spend on stats, how well they understand key metrics and also evidence that knowing your metrics helps in improving an SME’s performance. I think I have a reasonable grasp of the answers but I’m looking for some external validation.
August 30, 2012 at 12:20 am #1115149Up::0Hi Dan,
I think you are Going in Right Direction, but for small business i can say one thing that it is all matter of Results and Prices, i can see on your website it is written Free. So Definitely one will try it..Best luck..
Create Online Test or Quiz on ScoreBellAugust 30, 2012 at 1:03 am #1115150Up::0Depends on what you mean by “small”. Are you going to disect it further by industry, staff size or turnover?
it might serve you to do multiple surveys according to the above if you want to maximise interaction and engagement.
Call businesses and state your intention as a value proposition. Advise them that you will share with those who contribute so they can compare with others in similar industry, staff size, turnover, etc
The question you have to ask is will an accounting firm with 3 staff and 1 million turnover want to compare with a medical practise, 20 staff with 7 million turnover?
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