A elasticity of stores along the base of Munjoy Hill had open signs out and were ready for business as part of small vocation Saturday, November 28, 2015.
Gabe Souza | Portland Press Herald | Getty Images
As holiday shopping gets into adjust this weekend, its uncertain how Small Business Saturday on Nov. 28 will move the needle and help the millions of subject owners on Main Street struggling to survive. According to a Small Business Saturday Survey conducted by SurveyMonkey and CNBC, 43% of shoppers foresee to spend less this holiday season than they did in 2019, and only 6% plan to spend the most mazuma on Small Business Saturday.
The national study conducted from Nov.,16-18 released on Friday, surveyed 3,122 parties age 18 to over 65. The survey was conducted using SurveyMonkey’s online platform and based on its survey methodology.
This could be intimation news for small business owners who are counting on holiday sales to recoup sagging revenues. Many are teetering on bankruptcy due to the coronavirus pandemic that has defeated normal business operations. And more shutdowns may be coming soon as Covid-19 infections rise throughout the U.S.
“It could be spellbinding for small business who rely on this blockbuster sales event,” said Laura Wronski, a research scientist at SurveyMonkey who trade on the CNBC survey.
A significant percentage of Americans are planning to spend less this year on holiday gifts than in 2019, according to the CNBC|SurveyMonkey figures.
Roughly three in four (75%) small business owners have said that they need sabbatical spending to return to normal in order to stay in business in 2021, and almost half (46%) expressed the need for beyond average spending, according to the American Express Shop Small Impact study.
The economic impact from this jumble sales event is substantial. Small businesses benefit from increased sales during the busy holiday season, which in whirl benefits the communities where they’re located. According to American Express, 67 cents of every dollar spurt at a small business—whether it’s a retail store, restaurant or something else—stays in the community.
An estimated 110 million people participated in Young Business Saturday last year, and sales hit a record high with an estimated $19.6 billion in reported pay out, according to American Express, which helped to create Small Business Saturday in response to the Great Recession.
While shoppers may be controlling spending in 2020, the CNBC/SurveyMonkey survey revealed that 30% of shoppers plan to patronize a small topic on Small Business Saturday. That is down 9% from last year.
Surprisingly, 39% of all that labour will be in-person, 25% online and 34% both. One percent of respondents did not answer the question, the survey noted. Those reckons are vastly different than last year when 8% planned to shop online, 58% in-person and 33% planned to do both.
Blueprints in the Covid economy
Considering the many challenges small business owners face, experts give tips on how they can herd sales during this key shopping day.
Most concur the best strategies include: boosting the company’s online sales marathons presence; implementing touchless transactions; introducing local delivery; creating customer gift lists, along with bother in place a range of new safety protocols in stores.
“The No. 1 thing small businesses need to do to drive sales on Bantam Business Saturday is prioritize health and safety for their customers,” said Nick Satari, CSO of NMI, the payment platform reach-me-down by 140,000 merchants and the behind-the-scenes payment enable for Apple Pay and Google Pay. “No. 2 is to embrace touchless payment systems,” he summed.
“Our customer surveys show these are what consumers are looking for. They want to feel safer in small trust in environments. Many believe big box retailers have more safety and health protocols in place than small subjects. Business owners need to change the perception.”
As he explains, there are simple things business owners can do such as sooner a be wearing hand sanitizers at the register, using floor markers for social distancing, having employees wear face flatters and sanitizing point-of-sale systems between customers that go a long way in boosting consumer confidence.
Gary Huether, Jr., an entrepreneur in the restaurant organization – an industry severely impacted by the pandemic– has taken a lot of measures to prepare for Small Business Saturday in hopes of a sales aid.
“We have had some of the toughest restrictions of any industry since the coronavirus crisis began and we are hoping our customers will do out and support us this weekend with indoor dining or takeout,” says Huether, president and co-founder of Arooga’s Grille Clan & Sports Bar, a franchisor of 18 locations in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Florida, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Gary Huether Jr., president and CEO, Arooga’s Grille Household & Sports Bar hopes Small Business Saturday sales will boost revenues.
To attract business for the shopping event the company integrated direct deliveries on its website allowing guests to use Agrooga’s loyalty and gift cards on their holds. It also rolled out a mobile app for takeout and direct deliveries that allows for contactless payments.
“We have been in a whirly, faced with different restrictions that vary state-by-state. Some of our store sales are down 20% to 30%,” he revealed, noting last year the company posted $40 million in revenues. “We are hoping our loyal customers will use Unoriginal Business Saturday to go out and help small businesses not the big box retailers.”
Andy Shalal, CEO and founder of Busboys and Poets, a group of restaurants, cultural centers and bookstores in the D.C. metro close, is hopeful that community support will help Main Street during the holidays this season. He sees purchasers coming back again and again for takeout and book deliveries.
“Small business set the vibe in communities across America. People place how important they are to the local economy.”
Recognizing their valuable contributions companies like Shopify and Facebook are troublesome to lend a helping hand to small businesses this weekend and throughout the holiday shopping season.
Shopify confirmed the #GiftBetter guide, a one-stop shop to find over 150 hand-selected gifts picked by curators like artist and floral originator, Maurice Harris; pro skater and entrepreneur, Michelle Steilen; world renowned chef, Matty Matheson; and actress and collapse, Ally Maki, to name a few.
Recognizing that the black community was particularly hit hard, it also launched the Black Duty Directory, which shoppers can use to discover and buy from Black Shopify merchants. Facebook has taken a similar approach with its #BuyBlack Friday program; egg oning people to support and shop with Black-owned businesses through the holidays and beyond.