U.S. Small Business Owners Have Positive Economic Outlook For 2015, But Remain Skeptical That The White House And New Congress Can Address Issues Most Important To Them
Endurance's survey of U.S. small business owners found that most have a positive 2015 economic outlook, but concerns remain on the issue of taxes and their ability to obtain bank financing
BURLINGTON, Mass., Jan. 19, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Endurance International Group (NASDAQ: EIGI) today released the results of a survey of its U.S.-based small business customers. The survey found that 66% of small business owners have a positive economic outlook for 2015 as compared to 2014. However, a majority (69%) remains deeply skeptical that the new leadership in Congress will be able to address issues important to small businesses.
The results of the survey, released on the eve of President Obama's sixth State of the Union address, reveal that while 87% of U.S. small businesses feel that Congress has not been effective in addressing issues important to small businesses, 74% believe that Congress should play a larger role in helping grow U.S. small businesses. A majority (61%) of small business owners do not believe that the President's State of the Union address will have significant impact on their business planning for 2015.
Asked to rank key issues important to small businesses, survey respondents ranked Taxes as well as their Ability to Obtain Bank Financing as their top two concerns. On other key policy issues, 55% of survey respondents said Tax Code Reform also "Impacts my business significantly." Survey respondents were mixed on the impact of Healthcare Reform, with 37% responding that it "Impacts my business significantly," 36% responding "No Impact" and 27% responding "Impacts my business in minor ways."
The Endurance customers surveyed, all of whom have web presence solutions from the company, regard Net Neutrality as an important issue. 49% responded that Net Neutrality "Impacts my business significantly." Additional survey results can be found in the chart below and online here.
Endurance International Group is a leading technology provider of cloud-based platform solutions to help small and medium-sized businesses succeed online. Endurance, through its family of brands, supports more than 3.8 million subscribers globally.
"U.S. small businesses are the backbone of our economy and ensuring their continued growth and success is critically important to driving our country forward," said Endurance CEO and Founder, Hari Ravichandran. "Our survey shows that while small businesses remain upbeat about the future, concerns about tax code reform and bank financing remain top of mind. It's clear that our leaders in Washington need to keep small business at the top of their list of priorities when thinking about ways to create lasting economic growth."
Endurance conducted its survey of 850 U.S.-based small businesses from January 7 to January 15, 2015. For purposes of this survey, small businesses are defined as employing 10 or less people on either a full-time or part-time basis.
Survey Results
|
QUESTION POSED |
RESPONSES |
|
What is your general business outlook for 2015? |
Very Positive: 26% Positive: 45% Neutral: 25% Negative: 4% Very Negative: 1% |
|
What is your general business outlook for 2015 |
Positive compared to 2014: 66% Negative compared to 2014: 5% Same compared to 2014: 29% |
|
Do you plan to hire employees in 2015? |
No: 73% Yes: 27% |
|
Do you plan to make any financial investments, such |
No: 54% Yes: 46% |
|
Do you feel that the Congress is effective in |
No: 87% Yes: 13% |
|
Do you feel the new leadership in Congress will be |
No: 69% Yes: 31% |
|
Do you think Congress should play a larger role in |
No: 26% Yes: 74% |
|
Who do you believe plays the most significant role in |
Governor: 18% Local mayor: 3% Local city/town council representative: 8% A local business organization: 21% None of the above: 50% |
|
Please rank, in order of importance, what issues you |
1. Taxes 2. Ability to obtain bank financing 3. Ability to hired skilled workers 4. Healthcare coverage |
|
Net Neutrality |
Impacts my business significantly: 49% No impact: 24% Impacts my business in minor ways: 27% |
|
Tax Code Reform |
Impacts my business significantly: 55% No impact: 14% Impacts my business in minor ways: 31% |
|
Healthcare Reform |
Impacts my business significantly: 37% No impact: 36% Impacts my business in minor ways: 27% |
|
Immigration Reform |
Impacts my business significantly: 17% No impact: 64% Impacts my business in minor ways: 19% |
|
Do you feel that President Obama has been an |
No: 48% Yes: 31% Don't Know: 21% |
|
Which political party do you feel best represents and |
Democratic Party: 25% Republican Party: 20% Neither Party: 55% |
|
Do you think the President's State of the Union |
No: 61% Yes: 9% Don't Know: 30% |
|
Will you watch the President's State of the Union |
No: 44% Yes: 57% |
|
*Due to rounding, numbers may not add up to 100%. |
About Endurance International Group
Endurance International Group (NASDAQ: EIGI) helps small and medium-sized business owners establish, manage and grow their businesses by harnessing the power and promise of the web. As a leading provider of cloud-based platform solutions to help small and medium-sized business owners succeed online, Endurance, through its family of brands – including Bluehost, HostGator, iPage, Domain.com, A Small Orange, MOJO Marketplace and ResellerClub – supports over 3.8 million subscribers and is able to tailor solutions for small businesses at every stage and level of sophistication. Endurance is headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts, has a presence in Asia and the Americas, and employs over 2,400 people. For more information, visit endurance.com.
Endurance International Group and the compass logo are trademarks of The Endurance International Group, Inc. Other brand names of Endurance International Group are trademarks of The Endurance International Group, Inc. or its subsidiaries.
Press Contact:
Dani LaSalvia
Endurance International Group
(781) 852-3212
[email protected]
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SOURCE Endurance International Group
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