Nearly 80% of small companies doesn't have a mobile app of their businesses | Key4Communications |

  Endurance International Group released the results of a survey of its U.S.-based small business customers. The survey found that a majority of respondents (68%) believe having a mobile app would help them sell more and engage better with their customers. However, in an increasingly mobile environment where consumers are using their smart devices to find product information and store locations on the go, more than three quarters of respondents (78%) do not currently have a mobile solution or mobile app for their business.

The findings are detailed in the '2015 Small Business Perspectives on Mobile', a survey of 909 U.S.-based small businesses from February 26 to March 4, 2015. For purposes of this survey, small businesses are defined as employing 10 or fewer people on either a full-time or part-time basis. Digital devices’ influence on in-store purchase behavior is growing: more than $500 billion in sales is now influenced by mobile content. By the end of 2014, the portion of mobile-influenced in-store retail sales was expected to jump to more than 50%. A vast majority of small business owners understand this opportunity but they are slow to act because of the perceived barriers to entry.

Immediate Obstacles
The top challenges facing small businesses in regard to mobile, according to respondents, are not having a mobile presence (50%); reaching a new, younger customer demographic (37%); and too much time and resources required to enable mobile sales (37%). Despite recognition that they must have a mobile presence to stay competitive, small business owners encounter barriers before they can begin. Half of respondents cite lack of skill and knowledge as the biggest barrier to having a mobile solution or app and nearly a quarter (22%) cite concerns about cost.

Mobile Leads the Future
The outlook for small businesses on mobile is strong—survey participants are willing to explore and take advantage of an effective strategy. More than half of respondents (55%) agree that mobile tools are fundamentally changing the nature of sales for their business. As small businesses consider mobile solutions, respondents named device platform and compatibility (59%), ease of content authoring and content management system (“CMS”) integration (47%) and personalization and easy customization (46%) as the top three most important features from a list of seven. Nearly three quarters of survey participants (71%) plan to make a financial investment in mobile solutions within the next two years.

Additional survey findings:
-65% of repondents agree a mobile presence is required to stay competitive.
-87% agree they are comfortable adopting new technologies once they become mainstream.
-23% agree that having a mobile app is not worth the business risk.
-55% agree mobile solutions are fundamentally changing the nature of sales for their business.
-51% plans to make a financial investment in digital tools in 2015.