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BACKGROUND • August 2018 board retreat we discussed opportunities to revamp the SBDC • Brainstormed on programming options, mentorship opportunities, and creating a more vibrant space for the entrepreneurial community • 5 Key areas of focus • • • • •
Provide relevant connections Space making for early stage companies Enhance programming Develop more take-away resources Research
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SURVEY METHODOLOGY
• Partners • Colorado SBDC network • Multiple Chambers • Non-Profits • Other Technical Assistance programs • Survey was sent small businesses throughout the state • A variety of demographic questions were asked such as size of company by revenue and years in business as well as the owners gender and race. • Data was collected from February 4th through March 7th • Data was analyzed by an independent 3rd party 3
1,086 STATEWIDE SURVEY RESPONSES 21 Partners
February 4th through March 7th
1,086 responses
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DEMOGRAPHICS • 41% of respondent companies are womenowned businesses • 49% of businesses owned by minorities were also women owned
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DEMOGRAPHICS • 64% of respondents identified as Caucasian • The Hispanic/Latino group was the second largest at 11.3%
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CHALLENGES TO GROWTH • 48.4% of all respondent companies picked marketing and advertising as a top three issue for growth • 39% of all respondents selected access to capital as a top three issue for growth
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COMPANIES BY REVENUE • 74% of respondent companies make less than $500K in revenue annually
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COMPANIES BY REVENUE (CONT.)
• 60% of companies with revenue under $500K in revenue identified issues related to growth as their largest challenge
• 54.3% of companies with over $500K in revenue identified issues related to workforce as their largest challenge
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RESOURCES BY YEAR IN BUSINESS • More established businesses seek out professional services & industry specific associations. • 43.5% of all companies use an SBDC as a resource. • 55.1% of businesses under 2 years • 49% of companies with 2-5 years • 35.1% of companies with over 5 years
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PREFERRED LEARNING METHODS • Differences between the men and women were small, the largest gap being a 8% preference for online classes by women. • Women prefer consulting, mentorships, and online classes.
• Men have a slight preference for self study materials and video learning.
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BUSINESS ORGANIZATION MEMBERSHIP • 39.5% of survey respondents are members of a business organization • 48% of respondents that are members of a business organization identified themselves as members of an industry specific organization
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BUSINESS ORGANIZATION MEMBERSHIP • Largest reason for not being a member of a business organization is the price and lack of time
• Too expensive (40%) • Not enough time (39%)
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CONCLUSIONS & NEXT STEPS • Marketing and Advertising is a top issue for growth in the largest amount of respondent companies. • For companies with over $500K in revenue, workforce issues are the largest barrier to growth. This includes the cost of healthcare and a lack of qualified workers. • Access to capital was a top three problem for a majority of ethnicities but was the largest among Black/African-American and Hispanic/Latino business owners.
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NEXT STEPS • The Denver SBDC will be implementing new long term, intensive programming to address marketing strategies. • To address the lack of qualified workers that larger companies are experiencing, the Denver SBDC will partner with educational institutions, apprenticeship programs, and non-profits to create a pipeline between small businesses and qualified interns.
• Access to capital was another one of the largest barriers to growth. The Denver SBDC is exploring options to expand current programming and exploring the implementation of new ones. 15
NEXT STEPS • We will conduct a small business survey annually
• We will add & change questions each year to further explore issues and identify new programming opportunities • Should have more Latino responses, so we are working to identify avenues to reach that audience more effectively • Continue to bring awareness to the services provided by the SBDC 16
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