Post-COVID-19 Business – Bada Business

COVID-19 Impact: Meeting Customer Expectations Top Challenge for Indian SMBs Amid Pandemic

New Delhi, October 15: Amid the coronavirus pandemic in India, the small and medium businesses (SMBs) have been finding it challenging to bring innovative offerings to market, personalise customer engagements and keep up with demand when meeting customer expectations. A new report revealed that financial management is the top challenge SMB leader respondents personally face when growing their business. According to a study conducted by leading Cloud software company Salesforce, maintaining financial growth is the top challenge constraining future business growth. It added saying that meeting customer expectations is the top constraint on operations for SMB respondents in India.

The survey was conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Salesforce. Sunil Jose, Senior Vice President, Salesforce India, said that while reduced customer demand is the top constraint on future growth, applying for financial assistance is the top consideration for the future of the business for the SMBs in the country. “Amid a challenging business environment, SMB leaders have displayed remarkable strength and resilience with only 16 per cent of SMB respondents in India expecting an entirely new structure post the pandemic,” the study said. “This demonstrates that SMBs’ in India are resilient and positive of business continuity ensuring they get back on track”, the study added.

A report by IANS said that while 30 percent of the SMB leader respondents in India expect business to be as usual, 48 percent believe it would be slightly modified. In addition to pre-pandemic challenges, the SMB leaders in India are now faced with operational restrictions, compliance mandates, and shifting customer expectations. However, SMB leaders remain optimistic about the future of their businesses globally, the report added.

It added further that even during the pandemic, SMBs are continuing to adopt new technology, with at least one in five SMB respondents reporting they’ve implemented at least one of the following technology solutions in the last six months, including email marketing software, customer service software, project task collaboration tools, or e-commerce software. “Globally, SMBs’ are at a critical juncture. The key to accelerating consumer demand and solving problems for scale, come down to how they leverage technology to deliver the best customer experiences,” Jose explained.

New Delhi, September 9: The coronavirus pandemic has affected everyone, from businesses being shut, to workers being fired, the economy of the country is in the doldrums. Amid the gloom, a new report- “HP Asia SMB Report 2020” has been published which gives a ray of hope. According to an IANS report, 73 per cent of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in India are confident that they will survive and bounce back post-COVID-19.

The report highlights that Indian SMBs are more confident than their Asian peers in bouncing back after the pandemic as the regional average stood at 60 per cent. The Indian SMBs are confident that they will bounce back and believe that this period is giving them a good opportunity to reformulate the business strategy.

The respondents are hopeful that the pandemic would bring business opportunity, but it will take some time. Here’s how the SMBs believe to bounce back and fight the pandemic:

4 Key Aspects Which SMBs are Looking at:

The report mentioned that Indian SMBs have recognised four key aspects that will help them best to bounce back – using online tools, flexible work options, advice on strategy and innovation at work.

Doing digital: SMBs in India recognised the importance of going digital to revive the business. The report mentioned that the respondents believed that digital adoption was essential for the revival of the business.

For the study, 1,600 SMBs completed the survey between May 26 and June 7, which comprised 200 interviews in each of the markets- Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.