Bluume Survey Reveals the Secret Lives of Small Business Owners

USA - English

• USA - English

TEMPE, Ariz., Sept. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- New research from Bluume, the small business's trusted solution for making marketing decisions easier, offers new insight into the secret lives of small business owners, which reveals that almost a third of these owners have dated a customer.

It also indicates that when small business owners aren't connecting with customers, chances are good you will find them managing their social presence. The Bluume survey of more than 500 small business owners, which was commissioned in September, shows that almost three-quarters monitor their own social profiles. And nearly 90% spend one to four hours a day managing social media.

Looking for Love (or Even Just Friendship)? Talk to the Owner!
Business owners are busy people. But some still find time to date, and some date customers.

In fact, 31% of the small business owners that Bluume surveyed admitted to having been on a date with a customer at least once. Male small business owners were more likely than female ones to have dated customers, with 38% saying they have done so. Nearly a quarter (23%) of female small business owners said they had been on a date with a customer.

Small business owners also like to spend their free time with other entrepreneurs. Eighty percent of the total survey group said they are friends with other small business owners. And 67% said they sometimes plan local events with their friends at other local businesses.

Me, Myself and I
Whether or not it involves dating, small business owners said they are most concerned with how to deliver the best possible customer experiences. Nearly half (49%) of the Bluume survey group said offering good customer service is their No. 1 concern. So, customers who are looking to connect with small business owners might consider broaching the customer service subject to break the ice. It might just lead to a hot date.

But servicing customers is just one small business owner concern. Technology is another.

Forty-two percent of small business owners said managing their technology is both a concern and a pain point. The same share said generating creative marketing ideas is a pain point.

Sixty-seven percent of the survey group owns a franchise. And while almost half (49%) of those franchise owners said they like the fact that franchises have set marketing tools and events for them to use, not everybody feels that way. Forty-two percent said the most difficult thing about owning a franchise is following the rules of a larger company. In addition, about a fifth (21%) said it's not always ideal to have to use the marketing and promotional tools, and hold the events, required of franchises.

Excuse Me While I Take a Selfie
Not all small business owners are supplied with marketing and promotional tools, of course. Many are left to their own devices to appeal to customers and prospects; 67% turn to social media to attract business and engage customers.
The survey indicates that the most popular social media platforms with small business owners are:

• Facebook, which 85% of the survey group uses
• Instagram, which 67% of the group uses
• And Twitter, which 53% of the group uses

The Bluume survey also shows that 70% of small business owners manage their own social media profiles on such platforms. Meanwhile, just more than a fifth (21%) have a social media manager handle it. A fifth has a staff member do it sometimes. And a fifth use software to manage it.

And, as the survey illustrates, managing social media takes significant time. A whopping 89% of the survey group said they spend between one and four hours a day on such pursuits.

Adopting the Warrior Mindset
This survey demonstrates that owning and operating a small business is no easy feat – it's a battle every day. And that comes as no great surprise. But this research does provide some interesting insights into the concerns, demands and desires of small business owners.

"We created this survey to learn more about small business owners, what they care about and how they spend their time," said Bluume CEO Rhett Doolittle. "That will allow us to better execute on Bluume's mission to assist business owners in making the best possible decisions to optimize profitability. We know running a business is a lot of work. Bluume is here to help."

Bluume's Business Warrior helps small business owners get passionate about their businesses again. Business Warrior prioritizes small business owners' daily decisions to allow them to become more profitable. It enables them to see which of their digital efforts – related to website/SEO, social media, local listings and reputation – are working and which are not. It also allows businesses to have greater trust and confidence in the decisions they make.

About Bluume
Bluume offers the Business Warrior software, which helps small business owners simplify and prioritize daily decisions to improve profitability. Business Warrior takes a holistic view of a business's online reputation, listings, website search and social and recommends the most important actions to drive new customers and have the biggest impact. Built-in metrics validate performance, ensuring that the business is on track to be as profitable as possible. For more information, please visit https://bluume.com. Find us on Facebook and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Bluume Survey