How Small Business Revenues have been Impacted by COVID-19

Background

GoCanvas surveyed its customer base, as well as other small business leaders, in June 2020 about their industry outlook as a result of the global pandemic. This blog post highlights our initial findings. Data from this GoCanvas Small Business Report is sourced from 270 small businesses within a varying spread of industries.  

Industries Include:

• 17.9% – Specialty Trade Contractors 
• 13.6% – Building, Equipment, Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC 
• 8.1% – Transportation Logistics 
• 7% – Healthcare 
• 5.5% – Foundation, Structure, & Building Exterior Contractors

Business Outlook Pre- vs. Post-COVID-19

The global pandemic forced many small businesses to halt operations, furlough employees, and increase precautions for contractors, suppliers, and vendors. While a strong proportion of small businesses cite overall confidence in their ability to return to normal operating levels, the short-term impact of the pandemic is felt across industries. 

On a scale of 1-10, please rate the outlook for your business BEFORE COVID-19 (1-Pessimistic; 10-Optimistic)

On a scale of 1-10, please rate the outlook for your business AFTER COVID-19 (1-Pessimistic; 10-Optimistic)

Per the visuals above, it will likely take time for small businesses to return to their originally forecasted operating levels. As of June 2020, nearly 14% of our response base shared their business was still suspended (considered non-essential) due to their state’s mandate. 

Of the respondents that were able to stay open during this time, nearly 50% of our respondents shared that the “stay-at-home” order was restricting the amount of work they can do. Meaning, regardless of a business’s essential status, workforce operations and efficiency are being impacted at an unmeasurable level. 

Revenue Impact

To get a better short-term estimate of business impact, we asked our respondents to rate their revenue expectations for the rest of this year: 

For many small businesses, it’s too early to tell how big of an impact the pandemic will have on their revenues – nearly 42% to be specific. To find out which industries are largely predicting the most significant declines in revenues, sign up for our webinar to learn more.

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Interested in learning more? Tune into our live webinar on Thursday, August 22nd, at 2 PM ET, as we review more survey results. Register here.