<p>With this year’s US Small Business Week just behind us, we’re looking at the world of small businesses – in the US and UK. What makes up a small business. The problems they face. And how Feefo can support them during Small Business Week and the other 51 weeks of the year too.</p><p></p><p>No matter which side of the Atlantic you live on or what you do, small businesses will have played a vital part in your life - directly and indirectly.</p><p></p><p>You probably use a small business several times a week or even daily. They help provide jobs and support consumer spending. Without them, both the UK and US economies would have serious problems. Even though they’re individually ‘small’, the contribution they make to each economy is anything but.</p><p></p><h2>What constitutes a small business</h2><p>The definitions of what makes a small business in the UK and in the US are quite different. The UK government defines a small business as one with less than 50 employees and a turnover of less than £10 million. In the US, as with so many things, small businesses are bigger – with the Small Business Administration’s general definition being fewer than 500 employees. Another measure they use is a maximum turnover of $41.5 million. These US figures do change, though, depending on the industry in question.</p><p></p><p>With such big differences in the way small businesses are classified, it’s difficult to make meaningful direct comparisons between each country. So, let’s look at how they impact each of their economies separately.</p><p></p><p>In the UK, there are around 217,000 small businesses. And while this means they’re only 4% of the total number of firms in the country, they employ 16% of the working population. And they generate 15% of the country’s total business turnover.</p><p></p><p>Small businesses in the US account for a huge 44% of the country’s economic activity. They’re also responsible for over 60% of jobs in America.</p><p></p><h2>The issues facing small businesses today</h2><p>The covid pandemic and the global economic problems caused by the war in Ukraine have had a significant impact on small businesses worldwide and added to the day-to-day problems they encounter.</p><p></p><h3>Rising cost and falling spending</h3><p>Inflation is the main problem for small businesses at the time of writing. They’re facing rising supplier costs and reduced customer spending in a double whammy for business owners.</p><h4>How Feefo can help</h4><p>We can’t do anything to cut the rising costs small businesses face. But verified reviews do help alleviate consumer anxiety when it comes to parting with their cash.</p><p></p><p>Using a platform like Feefo that collects genuine reviews from real customers establishes your business as one that people can believe in – especially important if you’re a small brand. Current customers will feel reassured they’ve made the right choice in picking you. And new prospects will feel confident to shop with you.</p>

Digital Marketing Coordinator, Medical Monks 

<h3>Revenue and cash flow</h3><p>In the small business world, healthy revenue and consistent cash flow are vital, and even a small interruption can be fatal for some companies. With consumer confidence and spending hit, many businesses are seeing revenues fall and becoming less profitable. To overcome this, they have to choose between passing increased costs on to customers or cutting their profit margins further.</p><h4>How Feefo can help</h4><p>Displaying verified reviews can drive revenue and cash flow.</p><p>When customers leave positive reviews, studies have shown online sales can be boosted by <a href="https://www.dixa.com/page/reconnecting-the-customer-experience/" target="_self">up to 18%.</a> Reviews are also one of the biggest influences on customers’ buying decisions, with up to <a href="https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.brightlocal.com%2Fresearch%2Flocal-consumer-review-survey-2017%2F&data=05%7C01%7Ck.woodward%40Feefo.com%7C6a9c33e9f2cc44fe880008da8cee770f%7Cba89dc54cd184fedb9783dfe890a4aa2%7C0%7C0%7C637977253072550850%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=21vEUNfu2c3kYjBxP%2FFQIzyAwX4xxR98taa2m8t%2Bwtc%3D&reserved=0" target="_self">85% of consumers trusting online reviews</a> as much as they do personal recommendations. That’s great news for small or niche brands that people might find hard to get any personal recommendations on.</p><p>Reviews of individual products have been shown to increase sales by up to 200% better than those without too.</p><p>Our reviews can help improve your performance in search results and <a href="https://www.feefo.com/en/business/resources/webinars/seo" target="_self">generate Google stars</a> to make you rank above bigger competitors with larger budgets. Adding our reviews to your adverts can <a href="https://blog.reviews.io/post/how-online-reviews-impact-click-through-rate" target="_self">triple click-through rates</a>. Simply displaying reviews can <a href="https://spiegel.medill.northwestern.edu/_pdf/Spiegel_Online%20Review_eBook_Jun2017_FINAL.pdf" target="_self">increase conversions by 270%</a>.</p><p>With companies, especially smaller ones, having to look closely at their marketing and new business budgets, reviews are a proven way to keep cash flowing.</p>

Digital Marketing Manager, Impact Factory

<h3>Improving your products, service and keeping customers loyal</h3><p>If you don’t know someone has had an issue with your products or service, you can’t put things right and you may lose their custom. The same problem could go on impacting others too. Before you know it, your loyal customer base could have shrunk considerably.</p><h4>How Feefo can help</h4><p>A verified customer review platform lets you hear the voice of your customers. It gives them an easy way to let you know what they think and when they feel let down. When you proactively respond to a review, especially if things haven’t gone perfectly, it shows that you’re committed to providing excellent customer service. In fact, <a href="https://www.qualtrics.com/blog/online-review-stats/" target="_self">89% of consumers</a> pay as much attention to the reply to a review as they do to the review itself.</p><p>Having both positive and negative reviews on your website actually increases trust too. Consumers obviously feel a brand that gets just glowing feedback is too good to be true. Because our reviews are from verified customers, you can relax knowing there are no fakes in there.</p><h3>Planning ahead</h3><p>Just the day to day running of a small business is a full-time job. So, getting the time to even think about taking it to the next level can be difficult to say the least. And you need that genuine insight to base your plans on.</p><h4>How Feefo can help</h4><p>Listening to feedback and our AI technology gives you access to insights that help you identify opportunities, spot trends, and get better at everything you do. They’re always there as well for when you need them so you can make quick decisions if you have to.</p>

Director, Harris & Jones

<h3>Establishing your sustainability claims</h3><p>Consumers expect businesses to act on sustainability - even small ones. Staff too are actively seeking out companies that take sustainability seriously. With greenwashing rife though, people don’t automatically trust claims made by brands.</p><h4>How Feefo can help</h4><p>Depending on your business model and how you operate this can be a great way to differentiate yourself from the competition – especially the ‘big boys’ that might have other reputational issues. We’ve designed our <a href="https://www.feefo.com/uk/business/product/product-customisations/sustainability/ecolabels">Sustainability Awareness Solution</a> to help you demonstrate your independently verified sustainability claims. Based on the <a href="https://www.feefo.com/uk/business/resources/business-insights/united-nations-sustainable-development-goals">United Nations Sustainable Development Goals</a>, which cover a wide range of sustainable activities, it can be a real game-changer.</p><p></p>

If you’d like to learn more about how we can help you grow your business, just get in touch, and one of our experts will be happy to help.

Are you running a small business?

Helping small businesses succeed with Feefo

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<p>January is a fresh start, an opportunity to improve, and the perfect time to reflect on where you are - and where you want to be. If you have some New Year’s resolutions in mind to help you reach your 2023 goals, you’re certainly not alone.</p><p>This year, a huge <a href="https://www.finder.com/uk/new-years-resolution-statistics">30 million people in the UK</a> will be making New Year's resolutions. That’s over half of the UK population taking steps to better themselves. In the US, <a href="https://today.yougov.com/topics/society/articles-reports/2022/12/28/americans-new-years-resolutions-2023-poll">more than one-third (37%)</a> say they have a goal they want to accomplish in 2023.</p><p>When it comes to personal goals, many resolution-makers have the same aspirations. <a href="https://www.finder.com/uk/new-years-resolution-statistics">28% of the UK population</a> vow to improve their fitness, 27% want to focus on money, and 24% put family at the centre of their commitments. The US population are setting similar goals this year, with the top three resolutions in 2023 being to improve health, save more money and exercise more. However, the optimism and gusto of the new year is often short-lived. Research shows that just <a href="https://insideoutmastery.com/new-years-resolution-statistics/#:~:text=43%25%20of%20all%20people%20expect,keep%20their%20New%20Year's%20resolutions.">9% of people actually keep their resolutions</a> with most quitting before January is over.</p><p>Just as millions of people use January as a chance to reassess their visions and make new goals for the coming year, there’s a lot to gain from businesses doing the same. Here are five New Year’s resolutions that could completely transform your business in 2023, and how to avoid being part of that 9% of quitters.</p><h2>1.Make better connections with your customers and employees</h2><p>The New Year is the perfect time to reach out to your customers to see how they’re feeling about your brand. Proactive customer service is a great way to build lasting relationships and can identify any issues that need attention, including any problems that arose during the busy Christmas period.</p><p>Likewise, your employees are an incredible asset when it comes to the success of your business. Full of ideas and constructive feedback, make sure that you take the time to regularly ask staff for their opinions. As well as making significant improvements to your business, you’ll also create a better working environment for your employees.</p><h3>How you can stick to it:</h3><p>Use surveys to ask for feedback from both your customers and your employees. With Feefo Surveys, you can make responses anonymous for your staff, and share survey links anywhere for your customers, including websites, social channels and emails, without the need for data capture.</p><h2>2.Show you’re listening to feedback</h2><p>Customer feedback provides crucial learning points for businesses, so there’s no need to fear negative reviews. Our research found that 69% of consumers said they would continue to make a purchase if they could see that a company had acknowledged a poor review, apologised, and offered a solution.</p><h3>How you can stick to it:</h3><p>Make sure the review solution you choose allows a two-way dialogue between you and your customers, like Feefo. We have plenty of resources that can help you respond to negative feedback, and our team is always on hand if you need any extra support.</p><h2>3.Say no to fake feedback</h2><p>Fake online reviews cost the global economy a <a href="https://www.feefo.com/en/business/resources/blog/fake-reviews-really-illegal">massive $152 billion a year</a>, and can be hugely detrimental to your brand reputation. Prioritise safeguarding your business against fake feedback, so your customers know that you only collect reviews that they can trust.</p><h3>How you can stick to it:</h3><p>Use a trusted reviews platform to collect feedback, and make sure that the platform doesn’t allow just anybody to leave you a review. That way, you know that all opinions are from confirmed customers that both you and your customers can trust.</p><h2>4.Seize automation opportunities</h2><p>Is your business using technology to its full potential? There is software available to automate just about any process, from invoicing to customer service. Automating these tasks doesn’t just cut down on the number of manual errors, but it frees up resource too.</p><h3>How you can stick to it:</h3><p>Automate your customer feedback processes with Feefo. Our technology enables businesses to automatically send tailored feedback requests, receive instant notifications from low-scoring reviews, and load sales data into your Feefo account. Our reports are full of tools that quickly summarise the data in your reports and spot trends in an instant.</p><h2>5.Embrace change</h2><p>Not every product you sell or service you provide in 2023 will be successful. If something isn’t working for you, make a habit of acknowledging it before making some changes and moving on. The same goes for processes within your business, whether it’s marketing efforts or sales tactics. Pinpointing these weaker areas in your business is the first step to making significant improvements as you put your resource elsewhere.</p><h3>How you can stick to it:</h3><p>To make the right changes, you need to know what needs fixing. Asking for feedback at every point in the customer journey can give you a clear view of the entire experience, from start to finish. Feefo has the tools to help you pinpoint exactly what needs more attention - from sending review requests at specific times with Feedback Request Manager, to using Insight Labels in your reporting to spot reoccurring trends in your reviews.</p><p>If your customers are at the centre of your New Year’s resolutions, we can help you hit your goals. To find out more about how you can use customer feedback to make valuable changes to your business in 2023, <a href="https://www.feefo.com/en/business/get-in-touch">contact with one of our experts</a>.</p>

If you want a demo of how Feefo could work for you, or discuss our solutions and opportunities further, get in touch and one of our friendly team will be happy to answer any queries.

Want to find out more about Feefo? 

Five New Year’s resolutions we can help you achieve in 2023

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<p>We’re all about high quality feedback here at Feefo. Our invitation-only method of sourcing feedback means that you can be sure that the reviews we host on our clients’ websites are genuine. When you’ve had an interaction with a company, look out for invitations via email or SMS, to leave a review to share your impressions of the product or service that you’ve experienced. And if you’ve not yet received an invitation, then you can fill in our <a href="https://www.feefo.com/uk/business/for-reviewers/leave-review" target="_self">request to leave a review form</a> and we’ll verify the transaction and get back to you.</p><p>But how do you write a good review that other potential customers will find helpful?</p><p>It's important to be honest and detailed in your review, providing specific examples of what you liked or didn't like about the product or service. This can help other customers make informed decisions and help the company improve their offerings.</p><h2>Top seven tips for writing helpful reviews</h2><p>Follow our top tips, to ensure your reviews always get the thumbs up from other readers.</p><h3>Be specific</h3><p>Instead of writing a vague review, try to provide as much detail as possible. Adding in the specific elements of your experience, including what you liked or disliked about the product or service, helps other consumers understand what to expect. It also makes it clearer that yours is a genuine review, rather than something that anyone could have put together. This is less of an issue on Feefo because of our invitation-only model but detail still forms the basis of any really helpful review.</p><h3>Be honest</h3><p>It’s essential to say what you feel. If you feel positive – great, the business will love to hear about it. But don't be afraid to provide constructive criticism if there were things you didn't like about the product or service. Detail is helpful here too. Letting people know exactly what didn’t work for you is much more helpful than a rant about how everything was rubbish. It’s the detail about what needs working on that can help companies improve and provide better experiences for everyone.</p><h3>Use descriptive language</h3><p>Try to paint a picture of your experience to really bring the review to life. Consider the difference between "the food was good” and “the ravioli was great, with unusual flavour combinations and beautiful presentation with fresh herbs”. With the first example, you don’t even know what type of food is involved, while the second details the dish and exactly what about it was good. If you include descriptions of exactly what you enjoyed (or didn’t), you’ll help other consumers get a sense of what the product or service is really like. Plus it helps the business understand what’s working, so in this example, they might choose to keep the pasta dish on the menu or create similar dishes.</p><h3>Avoid bias</h3><p>Professional reviewers aim to approach every product or service with an open mind and ideally, you should do the same. Always stick to the facts and try to be objective in your review, avoiding personal biases and emotions. For example, if you don’t enjoy seafood, you may not have a great experience at a specialist seafood restaurant – but that’s not really going to help others, whose personal tastes are different to yours. Being objective will help other consumers make up their own minds based on the information you provide.</p><h3>Make it easy to read</h3><p>It’s important to do what you can to make your review easy for others to read. Check your spelling and grammar – many platforms will do this for you - and ensure you avoid acronyms, jargon or text speak as this can be hard to follow. Well written feedback can help ensure that your review is taken seriously and that others easily understand your message.</p><h3>Include photos or videos</h3><p>As the old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Including photos or videos can help bring your review to life, as well as making your feedback much clearer. This can be especially helpful for products or services that are visual, for example clothing or interior decoration products.</p><h3>Keep it concise</h3><p>While it's important to provide details, try to keep your review concise and to the point. We’re all busy and no one wants to have to work at it, to find out what you’re trying to say. It’s probably best to aim for around 100-300 words, depending on the product or service. This can help other consumers quickly get the information they need.</p>

<h2>Feefo and feedback</h2><p>We love to receive your feedback at Feefo – it’s what we’re all about. And <a href="https://www.feefo.com/search-reviews">you can read reviews</a> that other consumers have left on a range of products and services on our website, as well as seeing them on our clients’ websites too.</p><p>As we’re an invitation-only reviews platform, you can only leave a review for one of our clients after having a verified interaction with that company (i.e.you’ve bought something from them, visited one of their stores or contacted them in some way). Following that interaction, we send out invitations to leave reviews on the Feefo website and you can also request to leave a review, if you don’t receive an invitation to leave feedback within four weeks.</p><p>We publish all the reviews that we receive, provided they pass our <a href="https://www.feefo.com/business/support/content-moderation">moderation process</a>. We do not allow people to use bad language within reviews and we will not publish reviews if we cannot verify that you have definitely had an interaction with the company involved. You can <a href="https://www.feefo.com/uk/business/company/about">find out more about Feefo here</a>.&nbsp;</p><p></p>