Constant Contact's State of Small Business Marketing Report

© Constant Contact 2016
State of Small Business Marketing
Annual Report
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…50% fail within the first five years.
Viewed by many as the backbone
of the U.S. economy, small
businesses face an uphill battle...
Source: Small Business Association

And the personal sacrifices are daunting.
More than half feel like they can
never be away from their business.
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Source: Constant Contact Survey March 2015

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Source: Constant Contact Survey March 2015
So why do they do it?
62% say it’s so they can pursue theirpassion.

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Is enough?
What are their real
concerns and how are they
striving to succeed?

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Here is a look at 3 key areas
affecting small businesses and their marketing.

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(Moderately) Great Expectations:
Small business climate

Economics
Then & now
1
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Small business optimism
has grown over the past 4 years.
Source: Constant Contact Surveys – 2013, 2014, 2015

Economics
Then & now
1
% of B2Cs That Expected
2015 Revenues to Exceed
2014 Revenues
66% expected growth
18% did not
16% unsure
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% of B2Bs That Expected
2015 Revenues to Exceed
2014 Revenues
70% expected growth
16% did not
15% unsure
Ending on a high note…
Source: Constant Contact Small Business Holiday Survey 2015

Economics
Then & now
1
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...but almost ½ say the economy is
taking a toll on their business.

Economics
Then & now
1
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71% say
The upside to a down economy is that external forces
like the economy and increased competition have
forced them to become better marketers.

Economics
Then & now
1
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Does that mean that they’re spending
more time or more money?
60% say
they’re spending more time
on marketing now than 2
years ago.
However…

Economics
Then & now
1
13
…they are evenly divided on whether or not to
allocate more money to marketing in 2016.
34% will
spend more
35% won’t spend more
31% aren’t sure

Economics
Then & now
1
14
They need to do both.
When asked, “Looking back, what would
you do differently?”
65% of small-business owners said…
“Spend more time and money
on marketing.
“
Source: QuickBooks Small Business Trends & Stats

Economics
Then & now
1
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But where should today’s small business start?
Where do they need to market?

Economics
Then & now
1
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of small businesses
don’t have a website.47%
97%
Websites should
be a top priority.
Source: Score.org – Making Your Website Work! When You're Online, You’re in Business
of consumers search for
products and services online.
Yet…

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But websites are only one component of a
much larger strategy…

Economics
Then & now
1
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Number of Different Media Used for Advertising or Promotion
Source: BIA/Kelsey – August 2015

Economics
Then & now
1
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With all of the various options,
where are they focusing?

Economics
Then & now
1
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Source: BIA/Kelsey – August 2015
Marketing Priorities

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Email... the small business superpower!

Email
Where it fits
2
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What marketing strategies are they using to cope
with the challenging economy?

Email
Where it fits
2
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Marketers consistently ranked email as the single
most effective tactic for awareness, acquisition,
conversion, and customer retention.
Source: GigaOM/Extole Research Report

Email
Where it fits
2
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Rumors of
email’s death
are overblown.

Email
Where it fits
2
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At which point, 2.5 billion
email users will be using
mobile devices to access their
email (up from 1.4 billion in
2015).
This figure is expected to
grow 3% per year, reaching
246 billion/day by 2019.
By 2019, 85% of email users
will access their email
accounts via a mobile device.
Source: Radicati Email and Mobile Statistics Reports
These are the facts!
The number of emails per day
sent/received will
surpass 205 BILLION in 2015.

Email
Where it fits
2
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Email. It’s not dead!
It’s alive and better then ever...
Consumers want it. Small businesses trust it.
It’s easier than ever and it drives results!

Email
Where it fits
2
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91%of U.S. adults said they like to receive
promotional emails.
Why email? Consumers want it!
Source: Marketing Sherpa

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And small businesses trust it.
They’re sending more emails every year.
Why are the numbers growing?
Because small businesses see that email works.
Source: Constant Contact Email Volume Data

Email
Where it fits
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307,829,296301,821,516
October 1 November 24
How do small businesses maximize
the busiest time of year? With email.
For the second year in a row, Cyber
Monday and Giving Tuesday were the
two busiest days in terms of emails
sent from Constant Contact’s servers.
Source: Constant Contact Blogs – Thanksgiving Weekend 2015 Part II:
#GivingTuesday and Top Subject Line Keywords

Email
Where it fits
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Small Business Thanksgiving Weekend 2015 Breakdown:
daily emails sent
30
6%
increase
2014 2015 % Increase
Wednesday 316,451,083 323,011,584 2%
Thursday (Thanksgiving) 196,965,949 209,789,628 7%
Friday (Black Friday) 256,652,991 277,942,176 8%
Saturday
(Small Business
Saturday)
119,948,001 137,154,363 14%
Sunday 113,155,976 115,436,034 2%
Monday (Cyber Monday) 365,306,439 375,360,099 3%
Tuesday (Giving Tuesday) 330,571,920 360,926,239 9%
Total 1,699,054,373 1,799,620,123 6%

Email
Where it fits
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Retail Nonprofit Sports & Recreation Education Entertainment
Wednesday 17.8% 8.9% 4.0% 3.50% 3.10%
Thursday (Thanksgiving) 25.50% 7.50% 4.40% 2.50% 2.50%
Friday (Black Friday) 24.80% 5.70% 5.70% 1.90% 3.30%
Saturday
(Small Business Saturday)
26.40% 6.40% 5.70% 2.30% 3.30%
Sunday 25.70% 7.00% 5.10% 2.70% 2.60%
Monday (Cyber Monday) 20.60% 9.30% 5.00% 4.10% 2.10%
Tuesday (Giving Tuesday) 11.70% 19.50% 3.40% 4.70% 2.60%
Small Business Thanksgiving Weekend 2015 Breakdown:
by industry, percentage of daily email volume sent

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The industry is still evolving, with the largest tech
companies reinvesting in their email platforms.

Email
Where it fits
2
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It’s easier than ever.
But what and when you send matters!

Email
Where it fits
2
Because of information overload and smaller screens,
emails should be shorter and more direct.
How short? About 20 lines of text and three or fewer images
get the best click-through rates.
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Source: Constant Contact Newsroom – Constant Contact Data Reveals Direct Correlation
between Email Campaign Effectiveness and Number of Images and Text Lines Featured

Email
Where it fits
2
Some industries are finding
their own sweet spots…
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• Association click-through
rates remain consistent
between 20-30 lines of
text.
• Restaurants and
salons/spas both have
peak click-through rates
in emails with 15 images.
Source: Constant Contact Newsroom – Constant Contact Data Reveals Direct Correlation between Email
Campaign Effectiveness and Number of Images and Text Lines Featured

Email
Where it fits
2
What “clicks” with email subscribers?
After 5-7 links, additional links result in minimal
additional click-throughs.
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Source: Constant Contact Newsroom – The What, When, and Who of Successful Emails

Email
Where it fits
2
Accountants &
Financial Advisors
Restaurants Hotels, Inns, B&Bs
Religious
Organizations
Arts & Crafts
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When are subscribers most likely to open?
It depends what industry you’re in...
Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
6am 7am 12pm 5am
Monday
7am

Email
Where it fits
2
Smaller, targeted – and more personal –
campaigns perform better.
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Source: Constant Contact Newsroom – Subscriber Email Domain and Industry are
Major Factors in Email Open Rates, According to New Constant Contact Study

Email
Where it fits
2
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of all opens
come from
38%
of all opens
come from
5%
of openers
51%
10%
of openers
33%
of all
click-throughs
come from
5%
of clickers
44%
of all
click-throughs
come from
10%
of clickers
There are subscribers who open and
click-through most of their emails. In
essence, they’re “superfans”...

Email
Where it fits
2
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Email works! It drives results...
Source: VentureBeat

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What’s next for small business marketing?

Future
What’s ahead
3
Looking ahead
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The Mobile
Marketing
Opportunity
The Email &
Social
Connection
New
Technology
on the
Horizon

Future
What’s ahead
3
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The Mobile Opportunity

Future
What’s ahead
3
44
Small businesses understand the value of mobile,
yet they’re not taking full advantage.
55% agree
that mobile tools are
fundamentally changing
the nature of sales for
their business
78% do not
currently use
mobile tools or
solutions for their
business
Source: Endurance International Group– New Mobile Survey Data Shows That Small Business Owners
See Revenue And Growth Potential In Mobile Applications, Yet Less Than 10 Percent Have One

Future
What’s ahead
3
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Small businesses are using mobile devices largely in
the same ways they do for personal use.
Only 51% use smartphones to
promote and market their
business.
91% say the size of the screen impacts
what they are willing to do.
Time
Management
is top smartphone task
for small business
owners.
Source: MITX Blog

Future
What’s ahead
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The Email + Social Connection
+

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Today, small businesses
can find success by combining efforts
across multiple channels.

Future
What’s ahead
3
48
The Email + Social Connection = Powerhouse Combination
Email + Social, the top 2 tools for...
Acquiring New Customers
Social
66%
Welcome!
Email
63%
Welcome!
Social
41%
Email
71%
Selling to Existing Customers
Social
66%
Email
85%
Engaging Customers

Future
What’s ahead
3
49
Social media is a cost-effective
advertising channel for SMBs.
• More than half of all marketers plan to
increase their use of Facebook ads in 2016.
Why?
Source: Social Media Examiner
• Because 46% of all users will use their social
media platform of choice to make an online
purchase.
Source: Cloudswave

Future
What’s ahead
3
Looking ahead, small businesses
predict these 3 technologies will
have the biggest impact on their
business in the next 2-3 years.
50
51%
Video
Streaming
43%
Internet of
Things
37%
Messaging
Apps

Future
What’s ahead
3
51
Despite economic
challenges, small
business owners
are optimistic
about what lies
ahead.
Future
marketing plans
will include the
use of more
video and
messaging apps.
The time-tested
channels of
websites and
email, combined
with social
media, remain
the marketing
channels of
choice.
Email is the top
choice for
engaging and
selling to existing
customers; social
media and email
are a powerful
one-two punch
for acquiring new
customers.
Small business
passion and the
right mix of
marketing tools
fuels their rightful
place as a major
force in our
economy.
In summary…

Future
What’s ahead
3
52
Learn more from Constant Contact today…
Visit us online
www.constantcontact.com
Constant Contact
Marketing Resources
blogs.constantcontact.com/library
Constant Contact
Newsroom
news.constantcontact.com

Constant Contact's State of Small Business Marketing Report

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