Steve Connelly isn’t waiting for the economy to get better. He’s doing something about it himself.
The president and executive creative director of Boston ad firm Connelly and Associates is on the hunt for acquisitions, and he’s recently hired two people. But, like 86 percent of small business decision makers polled in a City Business Journals Network March survey, he said the economy is affecting business. He’s just not letting it get him or his business down.
“Is the economy affecting me and my clients? Yes. Am I gloomy about it? I can’t afford to be gloomy,” he said.
Nearly half of small business owners are concerned about their companies’ survival, according to the survey conducted in early March and presented by City Business Journals.
Key findings of the poll:
– Eighty-six percent of small business decision makers say the economic crisis has affected their business.
– Forty-six percent are concerned about the long-term survival of their business, down slightly from 47 percent in January.
– Only 35 percent of small business owners were optimistic about their business prospects, down from 63 percent in January. Phillips pointed out in his presentation that the optimism numbers often reflect the movement of the stock market, which was on a losing streak from January through early March.
– Seventy-seven percent rate the state of the economy as their top concern, ahead of such issues as the cost of health care and the rising cost of doing business.
– Business owners expect the current downturn to be a long slog. On average, they expect the downturn to last 2.4 years.
– When the economy does recover, business owners don’t expect to be doing a lot of hiring. Hiring new employees is behind such issues as paying down debt and increasing capital reserves on small business owners’ list of things to do.
– Business owners are skeptical about their own future financial security. Sixty-five percent think they may have to work longer before retiring than they had planned.
Photo by rcastello.