Small business predictions for 2013

Small business community Enterprise Nation has put together its predictions for business trends in the UK in 2013. They point to a year in which small businesses will come out tops.

The community, which provides support for homegrown startups, asked its 75,000 members what they thought the New Year had in store for UK small businesses.

“Despite the doom and gloom of the recession,” said Enterprise Nation member Sheryl McFarlane of Little Acres Rural Business Solutions. “Small businesses will continue to buck the trend and do well in the New Year.”

This, said Sheryl, is due to small businesses’ unique position versus bigger brands: “We’re able to build better connections with our customers than bigger brands – and really get to grips with the concept of relationship-building leading to more sales.”

Alex Mottram of Motties Slippers echoed Sheryl’s predictions: “Small businesses are better suited to adapt to economic challenges – and move with the times. In 2013, consumers will be even more discerning about whom they hand their money over to. They’ll want to know who’s behind the product – and that’s good for small businesses.”

According to PR business Above & Beyond, UK small businesses will “expand internationally and venture into untapped markets”. Suzanne Dibble of Lawyers4Mumpreneurs offered a prediction that makes international expansion a possibility for lots of UK small businesses. “2013 will be about channelisation,” said Suzanne. “About selling products in lots of places, like iTunes, Amazon, YouTube and Facebook.”

Enterprise Nation, which supports small businesses in the UK on its website, at events and through its business books and eBooks, also asked its authors for their predictions.

Jackie Wade, author of ‘Successful Selling for Small Business’, said 2013 will be a time for startups to rethink their product pitches: “As budgets become more and more squeezed, it will become more important than ever to clearly get across value and return on investment.”

Emily Coltman, author of ‘Finance for Small Business’, predicts an explosion in mobile payment solutions that will have an effect on independent retailers: “Customers will expect to be able to pay for goods and services straight away, and may go elsewhere – or just not bother! – if they cannot do so.”

Our own Dan Wilson added “Mobile, which includes smartphones and tablets, is set to become really huge for small businesses. Whether that’s eCommerce or mobile working – will 2013 see the death of the desktop? Or even the laptop?”

Enterprise Nation founder Emma Jones, who this year was awarded an MBE for Services to Enterprise, predicts small business growth, but not as we know it:

“In 2013, small businesses will work hard to grow their turnover, not their headcount. They’ll focus on what they do best and outsource the rest, and so enter new markets and increase profits, without increasing overheads.

“The challenge will be in how the government measures this modern form of growth.”

Enterprise Nation intends to match this modern form of growth with a modern business membership scheme, which it is launching in the New Year. It will be supported by existing free business books, guides and events, plus new and exclusive offers for business owners.

Find out what Enterprise Nation is doing to support new businesses in 2013 – and read Emma Jones’s full list of small business predictions on the Enterprise Nation website.