These days, many Americans are feeling much better about the national economy, and their place in it. With this in mind, it seems as if many are likewise growing more confident in small businesses, even as their faith in other institutions potentially dims.
Today, more than 6 in 10 Americans say that they have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in the small business sector in particular, ranking it only second of many major institutions in the country, according to a new poll from Gallup. Only the military, which had this kind of confidence from 74 percent of Americans, ranked higher out of the 17 different types of institutions – ranging from police forces to organized labor – examined.
What is interesting here, though, is that small business had significantly more support among consumers than its larger counterpart, the report said. In all, only 21 percent of those polled said that they had a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in big businesses overall, indicating just how much smaller firms remain a part of consumers’ everyday lives.
A potential issue
The lowest on the list of institutions in which consumers have confidence, however, was the U.S. Congress, and the results weren’t close, the report said. Just 7 percent of people polled said they had a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in these elected officials, who may play a critical role in helping to foster small business success going forward through the passage of various laws. This marked the lowest level of confidence seen since the poll was put into place in 1973. Meanwhile, 29 percent of Americans say they had that kind of confidence in the presidency, and likewise President Barack Obama has recently announced some plans to boost small business growth across the U.S., which may be an indicator of positive things to come.
Owners who want to best position themselves and their firms to succeed going forward might want to look inward first. Taking the time to cut costs including those for small business insurance coverage – including errors and omissions insurance – might be able to save thousands of dollars every year, and then put that money toward other aspects of their companies, such as hiring new workers or buying more equipment, that could help them to grow in the future.
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