Member Article

The future’s bright for small businesses in 2015

SMEs will increase productivity, grow their businesses and take on new staff in 2015, if predictions for the year ahead ring true.

According to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), the productivity of small firms has improved in 2014 – rising 1.1% during the final quarter – and companies are confident this will continue into 2015.

A separate survey by the CBI, meanwhile, has revealed that 50% of companies are planning to increase their workforce next year, and 43% intend to offer current employees a pay rise.

However, there are some pain points that SMEs should watch out for in 2015, including:

Lending – 22% of small businesses still think finance is a barrier to growth Skills – the CBI is warning that a skills gap among workers could threaten the UK’s economic growth

European impact – economic stagnation abroad could harm UK companies exporting overseas

For the retail industry, one of 2015’s greatest challenge will be creating growth that enhances the customer experience. More shoppers means a greater strain on resources, so small firms need to invest in their infrastructure as well as their workforce.

Even the most highly skilled staff cannot offset the business cost of being let down by out-of-date technology not equipped for serving high customer values. For instance, a reliable chip and PIN terminal is essential for giving shoppers the flexibility to pay by cash or card – and minimising transaction times.

Retail businesses based on the road – such as mobile hairdressers, plumbers, builders and taxi drivers – might want to take their customer offering to the next level and explore mobile card terminals next year. This not only enhances customer satisfaction, but increases cash flow by reducing the level of invoices that need to be chased in order to ensure payments have been made.

With the right technology and investment in place, 2015 has the potential to be very bright for small businesses.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Gareth Poppleton .