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How has Covid-19 affected business and what have we learnt.
Small businesses are the backbone of our community. Although they are resilient and creative, they are also vulnerable.
In June 2020 Xero commissioned The Next Chapter for Small Business study by Forrester Consulting to uncover the impact of the pandemic on small businesses and how they responded.
These are the 5 key recommendations to help small businesses recover and to help them build a business that is resilient and successful.

1.Make your financial information digital

Make your financial information easily accessible and digital. Cash flow was the biggest challenge to business owners, 58% of all businesses surveyed said they had cash flow problems. To access support, businesses need to have financial statements showing, income and expenses, cash flow, and payroll.

2. Make emotional connections with customers.
Having a strong relationship with your customer creates a bond of trust, this encourages the customer to buy from you or use your services more. They will also be more likely to recommend you to someone else. 39% of consumers want to contribute to the local economy. 27% like the personal interactions with the staff. A whopping 93% of consumers will, trust, recommend, and support a business that demonstrates empathy.

3. Use the power of your community.
Small businesses need to be resourceful. Developing partnerships within your community can help you to meet your client’s changing needs.
According to the study, thriving businesses were more likely to get help from their community partners. Over half of the small businesses said they need other small businesses to survive.

2. Use cloud-based tools to increase efficiency.
Manual, paper-based systems are more time consuming, environmentally unfriendly, and labour-intensive.
49% of business owners are using cloud technology during COVID-19, this is up from 32% in 2019.
By embracing digital small businesses have increased their revenue. Cloud bases tools can revolutionise the way you do business.

5.Use data to plan and predict the future.
Typically, small businesses are unprepared to deal with supply chain disruptions. Using data to make informed decisions can help businesses plan for the future. Business owners need to be strategic in planning their response.