Top Challenges Facing Small Businesses

Keeping up with today’s digital world can challenge companies, especially small ones.? To stay competitive, you must evolve and constantly evaluate the implementation of new practices to keep you at the top of your game.?

From heightened information security measures to diversity and inclusion efforts, leaders and managers have much to consider. In this article, we’ll discuss the most important challenges facing small businesses and how these challenges can be overcome.??

Information Security?

Cybersecurity threats are at an all-time high. In 2020, attacks spiked to 148% during the COVID-19 pandemic. With so many ways for cyber criminals to target businesses, it’s essential that you communicate with employees about the risks of opening themselves up to such an attack.??

Simply viewing an email can result in a ransom demand, demanding money before files and access will be returned to users. In addition, cybercriminals have many ways to uncover protected information from employees. They use phishing attacks, social engineering, cloud vulnerabilities, and ransomware attacks to force a company to meet its demands.??

Race has helped to block more than a million cyberattacks with CommandIQ, a free application for our business customers. This feature provides cybersecurity alerts, the ability to manage screen time and device usage, and the option to customize your bandwidth.?

The Rising Costs of Doing Business?

Every business is unique, but money impacts them all. When prices go up, companies are faced with a unique challenge—cutting back or raising prices. In 2022, a Goldman Sachs survey found that 91% of small business owners already struggle with the current economy’s impact on their industries, and 56% say the situation has worsened since the beginning of the year. Which begs the question—who absorbs the cost of simply doing business??

One way to combat the rising cost of doing business is through creative marketing campaigns. To help your business thrive, marketing is one method that is cost-effective and timely. For example, you can run a successful website affordably and double your share of customers and clients. Marketing also builds brand awareness, which is another simple way to keep your product or service relevant during tough economic times.?

Implementing New Technology in the Workplace?

Technology is constantly evolving. Keeping pace with the latest technology for your organization is an essential part of remaining relevant in any business. Equally as important is making sure your employees have buy-in with innovative programs and applications. Allow employees to familiarize themselves with new tech and make sure to explain why this technology is needed. Upgrading your user technology can be a game changer, but your employees must understand why and how.?

Internet technology is experiencing numerous advancements which can have a positive impact on the workplace. The internet has changed how we communicate, collaborate, advertise, and research. Consider 10G internet and how it's faster, more advanced, and essentially, a game changer for business.? These advancements could be exactly what your small business needs to remain competitive. How do you inspire your employees to buy-in when it comes to these new applications???

Make sure to provide extensive training, so employees feel comfortable with the programs they will be implementing and using daily. Help foster this adoption by breaking your team into smaller workplace groups so that they can connect, share, and make suggestions. Coordinated efforts will ensure that the transition to newer technology is a seamless one.?

Disaster Recovery Efforts?

First and foremost, fiber internet is strong and more resistant to outages during natural disasters and storms. Fiber protects against harsh weather conditions, keeping you safer and your company secure. Still, disasters happen.?

Like many challenging aspects of running a company, disaster recovery comes down to money. The cost associated with recovery efforts can be astronomical. For example, if a tornado wipes out the site of your business, you’ll need a secondary location to continue operations. And because time is money, this will need to happen quickly. You must also consider that some employees may be unable to physically travel to work due to highway closures, unsafe driving conditions, or closed public transit. This will require creativity, remote working equipment, and yes, money.?

One of the most important pieces to have in place in the event of a disaster is a data backup system. You’ll need key information as you plan how you will restart your business operations. This is often overlooked but can be the difference between recovering or standing still while your company slips away. Data backup is essential considering that even with a system in place, 68% of surveyed employees still lost data due to accidental deletion, hardware or software failure, or an out-of-date backup. Basically, disaster can come in many forms, so make sure you’re prepared.?

Maintaining a Vision for the Future?

Oftentimes, a vision is the start of a successful company or organization. This vision is your guide through rough waters, anchoring you back to the idea that first inspired you. Maintaining that vision can be challenging, especially for managers who are often isolated and tasked with reinforcing the vision for their team members.??

One way to use your vision as a guide is to create quarterly plans centered on your overall vision for the company. Every task, project, or big-picture goal should drive the company’s mission and therefore, its vision for the future.?

Inclusion and Diversity??

Major companies are committed to infusing inclusion and diversity into their workforce. Small businesses benefit from infusing diversity into their company culture as well. Customers and clients want to know that their choice of small business is committed to maintaining a rich and diverse workplace. In fact, a diverse design group is more likely to create products and services that work for a diverse clientele, avoiding biased assumptions, generalizations, or shortcuts.?

In other words, you’re more likely to reach a larger audience with your products and services if you are committed to diversity and inclusion within your organization or business.?

Technological Automation?

With the rise of Automation Technology, we must examine the challenges of this adoption to small businesses. One of the biggest challenges facing smaller companies is the cost of integration and implementation. Simply learning about how to integrate automation can be time-consuming and financially challenging. With this type of automation, you also run the risk of losing jobs. Depending on the type of automation you employ, specific tasks can now be automated, potentially putting employees out of their job.?

Another factor to consider is the training of employees to both understand and utilize this new automation. Using an automated program to handle a task that was formerly performed by a human requires patience and commitment to engage with this new process. Employees might be resistant to this change, with one concern being the loss of their own position.?

In Conclusion?

From information security to your company’s vision, keeping up in this ever-changing digital landscape provides many challenges. As automation increases, the need for employees shifts. As diversity continues to grow, companies must rise to meet the challenges of inclusion. As disasters strike, small businesses must be ready to face the effects of potentially starting over.?

At Race Communications, we’re committed to our small business customers and always ready to do anything we can to help streamline your company’s needs. If you don’t have fiber internet or require faster internet services, then we have you covered. Visit our website to learn more.?