Study by Thryv, Inc. and America’s SBDC Shows that 87% of Small Businesses Believe the Government Needs to Provide More Stimulus
As the pandemic continues, small businesses fear the ability to ever fully recover
Dallas, TX, January 14, 2021 – In an effort to gauge the impact of COVID-19 among small businesses, Thryv, Inc. (NASDAQ: THRY) and America’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) conducted a study with participants from over 1,499 small to medium sized businesses (SMBs) across more than 100 industries. The study revealed that most SMBs are still struggling and require stimulus support as the Coronavirus pandemic continues.
The new study launched on November 16, 2020, details how SMBs are still being affected by the pandemic. Key insights and statistics show which industries were affected the most, how many businesses had to make adjustments, and the consensus on making those adjustments permanent after the pandemic. The data revealed that 87% of SMBs need additional stimulus for 2021.
In late December 2020, Congress passed a second stimulus bill which includes renewed funds for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to help the country’s smallest businesses weather the hardships brought on by the pandemic.
”The new data shows that two-thirds of SMBs believe their business won’t completely recover one year from now,” said Gordon Henry, Chief Strategy Officer at Thryv. “These findings are concerning, but as small business supporters and advocates, we hope to change that outlook by raising awareness for the small business sector and providing resources to help business owners navigate the situation in 2021.”
Thryv — a SaaS and marketing solutions company with over 350,000 small business clients nationwide — and America’s SBDC conducted a previous study among small businesses from March 20 to July 2, 2020, where 4,244 small businesses participated. That study found that 82% of small businesses were “extremely concerned” about the current business environment due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
According to the recent data, now 45% of SMBs fear they will need to close their business, lay off employees or close locations if restrictions continue without additional government aid into 2021.
In an effort to advocate for small businesses, Thryv and America’s SBDC compiled key data points from the original study into a letter addressed to Congress in July 2020 pushing for support. The study showed small businesses that received their first stimulus loan started to change for the better quickly. Further results showed that three-fourths of small businesses that received the loan believe more stimulus was needed for their business to survive.
These studies by Thryv, Inc., and America’s SBDC will continue as new surveys go out each week to collect more data in 2021. The full results of the study can be found on Thryv’s website, here.
About Thryv Holdings, Inc.
Thryv Holdings, Inc. owns the easy-to-use Thryv® end-to-end customer experience software built for small business that helps over 40,000 SaaS clients with the daily demands of running a business. With Thryv, they can get the job, manage the job and get credit. Thryv’s award-winning platform provides modernized business functions, allowing SMBs to reach more customers, stay organized, get paid faster and generate reviews. These include building a digital customer database, automated marketing through email and text, updating business listings across the internet, scheduling online appointments, sending notifications and reminders, managing ratings and reviews, generating estimates and invoices and processing payments.
Thryv supports franchise operators and multi-location business owners with Hub by Thryv™, a software console that enables businesses managers to oversee their operations using the Thryv software.
Thryv also connects local businesses to consumer services through our search, display and social media management products, our print directories featuring The Real Yellow Pages® tagline, and our local search portals, which operate under the DexKnows.com®, Superpages.com® and Yellowpages.com URLs and reach some 35 million monthly visitors. For more information about the company, visit thryv.com.
Thryv delivers business services to more than 360,000 SMBs across America that enable them to compete and win in today’s economy.
About America’s SBDC Program: America’s SBDC (Small Business Development Center) Network is a partnership uniting private enterprise, government, higher education and local nonprofit economic development organizations. It is the Small Business Administration’s largest partnership program, providing management and technical assistance to help Americans start, run and grow their own businesses. Learn more at www.americassbdc.org.
