- Lack of capital/cash flow
Money is the lifeline of any business, be it big or small. For small businesses, this is an even bigger problem that threatens their existence. For instance, in 2021, 23% of small businesses noted that the biggest challenge they faced was a lack of capital/cash flow. This poses an immediate threat to existence. This challenge can be solved by obtaining loans, grants and other funding sources to keep the business running. However, only 75% of loans get approved, making it hard for the remaining 25% who might be in need. Fortunately, many funding sources in existence today may help keep your small business standing.
- Employee recruitment and retention
According to Small Business Trends, 19% of small business owners believe that employee recruitment and retention are significant challenges. Although the study was conducted in 2021 when the unemployment rate was at its low never witnessed before, strong employment rates can make it hard to retain the workforce. This explains why employee recruitment and retention have continued to be a challenge even in 2022 as the unemployment rates drop. With the significant resignations that occurred during the pandemic, recruiting the workforce and retaining them became challenging than ever witnessed. While your small business might need some employees, always take time to recruit the right people who will keep your dream alive.
- Marketing and advertising
The success of small businesses depends on the customers and their willingness to consume the products and services they offer. You can attain this through proper marketing and advertising. The Small Business Trends found marketing and advertising as the third most cited challenge for small businesses. The good thing about this is that there are many solutions in this category. You have to define the area of marketing or advertising you want to strategize and develop the right message. For instance, with the COVID-19 issue, many people have moved online. Therefore, online methods can serve you better.
- Time management
Time is a precious commodity for small businesses. However, businesspeople find time management a big challenge, and it is easy to see why. Operating a small business requires multiple sets of expertise and involves moving around from one place to another, doing multiple activities and serving in different positions. A small business owner can become a CEO, a human resource office and do marketing at the same time. This makes time management an essential factor that is often challenging to attain.
- Administration
The administration of a small business is another challenge that keeps owners awake. This involves activities such as bookkeeping, payroll management and others. Failing to administer your small business properly can cause problems and may end up ruining your operations. Some of the challenges you may encounter are keeping track of costs, sales, payments and purchases, which are tedious, time-consuming and complicated. Without proper administration, your business can dry up. This calls for carefulness and meticulousness in the administration of business operations.
