The spirit of American small businesses is driven by ingenuity and resolve. Amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and the unprecedented uncertainty it has created in our communities and economies, millions of small businesses are using digital tools and online marketplaces to adapt and keep their businesses open.
The fallout from the pandemic has been swift, catching many businesses off guard and unprepared. Many small businesses empowered by digital tools before the COVID-19 outbreak have sidestepped the hardships faced by other companies. Some have even thrived in this new digital first world.
This report highlights how small businesses deployed digital tools during the COVID-19 crisis and the effects those tools had on their approach to a “new normal.” This report was developed by the Connected Commerce Council in partnership with Google, based on data collected from a study conducted by LRWGreenberg.
The survey was fielded online from May 6 to May 18, 2020 among a nationally representative sample of 502 US small business owners in the following census-aligned verticals: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services; Educational Services; Accommodation and Food Services; Other Services (other than Public Administration); Retail Trade; Wholesale Trade; and Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation. Data were weighted to align with the known distribution of US small business owners in terms of business size; owner’s gender, race, and ethnicity; and region.
The Connected Commerce Council (3C) is a non-profit membership organization with a single goal: to promote small businesses’ access to essential digital technologies and tools. 3C provides small businesses with access to the market’s most effective digital tools available, provides coaching to optimize growth and efficiency, and works to cultivate a policy environment that considers and respects the interests of today’s small businesses.
Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. Through products and platforms like Search, Maps, Gmail, Android, Google Play, Chrome, and YouTube, Google plays a meaningful role in the daily lives of billions of people and has become one of the most widely-known companies in the world. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.
LRWGreenberg (formerly Greenberg Strategy) is a research and strategy consultancy focused on helping businesses understand the WholeHuman® Experience inside and outside the organization. Our approach integrates patterns thinking, insight and design in order to maximize companies’ value. We specialize in both qualitative and quantitative research around customers, brands, communications, products and organizations. Headquartered in Emeryville, CA, LRWGreenberg was awarded Quirk's Market Research Supplier of the Year in 2019.
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