The fear of a potential recession has started to impact the retail sales of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the US, with Q1 of 2023 witnessing a slowdown in their sales revenue. Inflation, sustained high input costs, and staff shortages are also affecting the profit margins of SMBs, as they struggle to keep up with larger companies in today’s market. The US Census Bureau reported a 1% decrease in retail sales for March 2023 compared to February, indicating that consumers are starting to slow down their spending.
To address these challenges, SMBs are increasingly turning to automation solutions to improve productivity and reduce overhead costs. Automation can streamline their operations and allow SMBs to focus on revenue-generating activities, resulting in increased efficiency and cost savings. According to market research, SMBs can lose up to 30% of potential revenue each year due to inefficient processes.
Mikel Lindsaar, CEO and Founder of StoreConnect, believes that automation is no longer a luxury but a necessity for SMBs. It can reduce errors and improve customer support, enabling SMBs to compete with larger companies. Lindsaar’s company, StoreConnect, offers a fully integrated eCommerce, Point of Sale, Content Management System backed by the world’s most powerful CRM, Salesforce, to help SMBs manage their website, online and in-store sales, provide excellent customer service, and run digital marketing campaigns.
With automation, SMBs can overcome the challenges of inflation, recession, and staff shortages by reducing overhead costs, improving productivity, and delivering better products and services to their customers. As 88% of SMBs believe automation enables them to compete with larger companies, it is becoming an increasingly essential tool for running their business.
The current market conditions are challenging for SMBs, but automation can help them navigate these conditions and stay competitive. As SMBs look for ways to improve their operations and remain viable, automation is becoming a critical factor in their success.
