(http://www.j2global.com)
While economists may be arguing about double-dip recessions and the
negative effects of unstable foreign governments, small business
owners in the United States remain positive about their own economic
prospects in 2012. The j2 Global@ Small Business Survey, conducted by
j2 Global, Inc. (NASDAQ: JCOM), reports that 76 percent of respondents
are optimistic about their company's growth for the remainder of 2012.
Less than 7 percent say they are not optimistic, while 17 percent say
they feel unsure until after the November election.
The survey provides additional insight into how small business owners
are embracing mobile technology and social media to run their
businesses. Here are three key themes the data uncovered:
With Youth Comes OptimismWhile more than three quarters of all
respondents in the j2 Global survey say they are optimistic for the
rest of 2012, younger business owners are most likely to expect
growth. More than 85 percent of Millennials (32 years old and younger)
say they are bullish. While still optimistic, each subsequent age
group becomes less so, with 81 percent of Generation X (ages 33-47),
71 percent of Baby Boomers (ages 48-66), and 64 percent of Seniors
(over 67 years old), expecting growth for their business this year.
Results varied by industry as well, with real estate, advertising and
financial services professionals showing the most optimism ( >80
percent).
(http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2023600)
For the remaining respondents, 17 percent are unsure of their optimism
for growth pending the November election. Concerns about election
outcomes varied by industry, with consultants, lawyers, and doctors
taking the strongest "wait and see" positions with 25 percent saying
that clarity won't come until November.
SMBs Are the New Social ButterfliesWhile established promotional tools
-- such as email and search -- are still the most popular, social
media is emerging as the great equalizer, often giving small
businesses a louder mouthpiece and more of an opportunity to
efficiently engage with customers. In fact, more than one in three
businesses surveyed by j2 Global (39 percent) say a quarter of their
marketing strategy now focuses on social media, while 26 percent say
it is half or more of their marketing strategy. Other key findings
included:
Mobile Is On the MoveAccording to the j2 Global survey, small business
owners are embracing mobile technology to reach new markets while
operating more efficiently. These findings parallel those of a study
from the Small Business and Entrepreneur
Council(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754269&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.sbecouncil.org%2fuploads%2fMobile%2520APP%2520Final%2520Report%2520SBE%2520Council.pdf)
showing that small business owners are saving 370 million hours of
their own time and 725 million hours of their employees' time per year
by using mobile apps and a Business Journals
study(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754272&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.eweek.com%2fc%2fa%2fMobile-and-Wireless%2fApple-iPad-Usage-Explodes-Among-Small-Businesses-149686%2f)
that the iPad is the fastest growing technology among SMBs.
The j2 Global survey focused on SMB use of mobile apps and the iPad
and found:
"Small businesses have always been a driver of economic growth. Seeing
their continued optimism, as well as their adoption of mobile
technologies and social media, is a promising sign," said Mike Pugh,
vice president, marketing of j2 Global. "SMBs keep pushing forward,
finding new, more efficient ways of doing business in the cloud and on
the move."
Complete results of the j2 Global Small Business Opinion Survey are
available on this
page(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754275&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fgoo.gl%2ffCL8n).
An infographic of the survey results can be viewed
here(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754278&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fhome.evoice.com%2fs%2fr%2fj2SMBsurvey_612),
along with an animated version on
YouTube(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754281&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3diMaBiw9p-BQ%26feature%3dyoutu.be).
About the j2 Global Small Business Opinion SurveyJ2
Global(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754284&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.j2.com%2f)
surveyed 1,067 small business owners, who are
eVoice(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754287&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.evoice.com%2f),
eFax(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754290&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.efax.com%2f)
or
Campaigner(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754293&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.campaigner.com%2f)
customers, via an online survey about hot topics such as the use of
iPads and apps, social networks, optimism in company's growth, access
to loans, and summer vacation plans between April 19 and April 26,
2012. The margin of error is +/- 2.98 percentage points.
About j2 Globalj2 Global (NASDAQ: JCOM) provides cloud services for
business, offering Internet fax, virtual phone, hosted email, email
marketing, online backup, unified communications, and CRM solutions.
Founded in 1995, the company's messaging network spans more than 49
countries on six continents. j2 Global markets its services
principally under the brand names eFax@, eVoice@, FuseMail@,
Campaigner@, KeepItSafe@, and Onebox@. As of December 31, 2011, j2
Global had achieved 16 consecutive fiscal years of revenue growth. For
more information about j2 Global, please visit
www.j2global.com(http://ctt.marketwire.com/?release=903298&id=1754296&type=1&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.j2global.com%2f).
iPad is a registered trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S.
and other countries.
Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. LinkedIn is a
registered trademark of LinkedIn Corporation. Google and Google+ are
registered trademarks of Google, Inc.
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