While digital and mobile solutions have been an important driver of companies’ success for years, the challenges faced by business owners and executives this year have revealed just how vital consumers consider these options - and exposed just how prepared and digitally resilient businesses were heading into the future.

In order to better understand the impact that the pandemic had on consumer sentiment around digital offerings and inform decision-making heading into the New Year, the 2020 Small Business Digital Resilience Report by Moxo surveyed 1,500 small business personnel and 1,500 small business customers across three key sectors: financial services, legal and real estate — all high-touch industries that must carefully manage secure client communications.

“This year, businesses learned that digital resilience was critical to surviving the pandemic — however, digital resilience is also critical to surviving in today’s digital age, period,” said Leena Iyar, Chief Brand Officer for Moxo. “However, the findings of this report indicate that consumers are demanding that businesses provide a simpler, more streamlined and more effective digital experience, or else they’ll move on to a competitor who will.”

Key findings from the report include:

• According to the report, in 2020, there was a 30% increase in consumers who said digital capabilities are a primary requirement when searching for a small service provider.
• Also, 66% of respondents said the pandemic has made them more likely to use small businesses in the future.
• Additionally, 84% of small business customers said they would consider seeking an alternative provider if digital capabilities were lacking.
• However, 63% of overall respondents said that the number of digital tools and technologies their company uses makes some tasks more complex.

“Small businesses are making headway with new technology. But just like the consumers they engage with, these businesses are also struggling to streamline interactions with the prevalence of disparate, disconnected technologies,” noted Iyar. “By leveraging a high-touch, comprehensive portal, businesses will be able to provide holistic virtual experiences that mirror customers’ natural behavior.”

Additional key findings from the 2020 Small Business Digital Resilience Report include:

• 89% of small business customers agreed that it was important to be able to reach out digitally to a small business instead of scheduling an appointment or phone call
• 40% of consumers said digital capabilities were a primary requirement when searching for a small- sized service provider before COVID-19.
• Now, 52% of consumers say digital capabilities are a primary requirement when searching for a small service provider — a 30% increase during the pandemic.

To read the Small Business Digital Resilience Report and learn more about the state of customer engagement for small businesses, click here.