THE VOICE OF NZ BUSINESS OWNERS & MANAGERS February … · 2020. 11. 22. · March 2011 September 2011 March 2012 May 2012 February 2013 August 2013 February 2014 Total New Zealand

MYOB Business Monitor February 2014

Page 1 © 2014 MYOB Limited, all rights reserved. Copyright strictly enforced.

MYOB BUSINESS MONITOR:

THE VOICE OF NZ BUSINESS OWNERS & MANAGERS

February 2014 report

February 2014



ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE

Business conditions show significant improvement

In the February 2014 Business Monitor survey, New Zealand small

and medium business owners and managers (herein known as

‘operators’ or ‘SMEs’) recorded a significant rise in revenue

performance over the previous 12 months. These surveys, of more

than 1,000 SMEs each time, are conducted twice a year.

Over one in three (35%) reported an increase in annual revenue

and just 21% reported a decline. 42% of SME operators reported

that their revenue remained steady.

An increase in revenue was more evident amongst manufacturing and wholesale operators (53%) and those with more than five employees (52%). Geographically, as the

table below shows, Christchurch operators were again much more likely to report an increase in annual revenue (47%).

March 2011 September 2011 March 2012 May 2012 February 2013 August 2013 February 2014

Total New Zealand 36% 30% 34% 31% 32% 30% 35%

Auckland 39% 30% 34% 35% 32% 31% 37%

Wellington 37% 27% 31% 40% 33% 29% 29%

Christchurch Not asked 29% 40% 28% 45% 41% 47%

Rest of NZ 33% 31% 32% 26% 27% 27% 31%

City/Metro 36% 30% 37% 29% 38% 32% 35%

Regional/Town 38% 27% 30% 33% 30% 33% 36%

Rural 30% 35% 35% 27% 24% 22% 34%

Green = Significantly higher than total Red = Significantly lower than total

22% 22%

26% 25%

28%30%

34%31% 32%

30%

35%35% 36% 35%38%

32% 31%

29% 30%27%

24%21%

Jun 09 Nov 09 Mar 10 Oct 10 Mar 11 Sept 11 Feb 12 May 12 Feb 13 Aug 13 Feb 14

Changes in revenue - previous 12 months

Revenue up Revenue down



Half of NZ operators now expect economic recovery in the next 12

months, compared to only 26% of their Australian counterparts

Operators’ expectations of the economy improving in the short-term

improved significantly in the February 2014 survey. Within this survey, 50%

of SME operators said they expected an economic improvement within the

next 12 months, compared to 28% in August 2013. This figure is well ahead

of the 26% expecting a recovery in Australia within the same timeframe.

This optimism was reflected in the proportion of operators expecting their

annual revenue to rise (47%), continuing the statistically significant trend

from May 2012 (36%). The proportion expecting their revenue to remain

steady (38%) remained similar to previous surveys, as did the proportion

expecting their revenue to decline (11%).

Over two in five operators (41%) reported more sales/work than usual in

their pipeline for the following three months. This is a significant increase

from the August 2013 survey. The trend also corresponds with an

underlying decline in the proportion of operators who had noted less

sales/work than usual in their pipeline for the next three months (down

from 22% in May 2012 to 15% this wave).

As shown in the tables on the following page, operators in Auckland were

the most positive about an economic recovery, while Christchurch

operators were the most positive about a rise in revenue. Manufacturing

and wholesale operators were more positive than other sectors on all

attributes looking forward, while agribusiness was more negative.

Operators more likely to be expecting a revenue increase included:

operators with more than five employees (68%), importers (63%) and

37%

55%49%

37%

23% 25%21%

18%24%

28%

50%


% expecting economic improvement within 12 months

34%

44% 45% 42%36%

41% 42%36%

41% 43%47%

16%10% 10% 12% 13% 13% 12% 14% 12% 10% 11%


Expected changes in revenue - next 12 months

Revenue up Revenue down

24%29% 29%

26%

31% 33% 33%30%

33%36%

41%

26% 26%23%

32%

21% 21% 23% 22%19%

17% 15%


Sales/work in the pipeline - next 3 months

Total more Total less



operators with a website or a social media site (61% and 62% respectively, compared those without any online presence - 38%).



Expectations by location

% expecting economic improvement

within 12 months

% expecting increase in revenue in

next 12 months

% reporting more in pipeline for

next 3 months

Total NZ 50% 47% 41%

Northland 37% 27% 31%

Auckland 60% 52% 43%

Waikato 52% 48% 47%

Bay of Plenty 39% 38% 31%

Gisborne/Hawkes Bay 54% 59% 56%

Taranaki 51% 34% 32%

Manawatu-Wanganui 49% 41% 37%

Wellington 46% 44% 39%

Christchurch 47% 57% 49%

Otago & Southland 37% 36% 38%

Expectations by industry type

Agribusiness

Business, prof. &

property services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing &

wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal &

warehousing

% expecting economic

improvement within 12

months

36% 56% 46% 73% 63% 42% 34%

% expecting increase in

revenue in next 12

months

37% 42% 52% 64% 70% 50% 54%

% reporting more in

pipeline for next 3

months

28% 39% 49% 40% 66% 36% 49%




Investment intentions show emphasis on improving margins

Mirroring their improved confidence in the economy, the focus for New Zealand

operators is now on improving pricing and margins on products and services

rather than simply trying to retain and acquire customers. 30% of operators say

they plan to increase their prices and margins on products and services sold,

while 54% planned to keep them steady. Only 6% planned to decrease prices

and margins with 9% unsure.

Customer retention and customer acquisition were rated similarly with 28% and

27% respectively planning to increase investment in these areas. The proportion

of operators planning to invest in these areas was significantly lower than that

recorded in the August 2013 survey (36% and 31% respectively).

The next five issues were seen as being of similar priority:

� The number and variety of products and services offered (24%)

� The amount paid to employees (23%)

� Sales of products and services offline (22%)

� Investment in IT systems and processes (21%)

� Sales of products and services online (20%)

Compared to the August 2013 survey, the biggest increases were:

� Increase prices and margins (up from 25%)

� Increase the amount paid to employees (up from 19%)

11%

19%

16%

14%

23%

22%

22%

19%

21%

27%

28%

38%

29%

9%

13%

16%

17%

22%

20%

17%

21%

20%

25%

29%

39%

24%

8%

16%

14%

11%

17%

20%

20%

20%

18%

25%

33%

36%

24%

10%

16%

19%

16%

25%

21%

20%

22%

19%

26%

31%

36%

25%

11%

16%

17%

18%

18%

20%

21%

22%

23%

24%

27%

28%

30%

The number of full time employees in your

business

Working with business advisers (eg.

accountant) to enhance your business

The $ value of spending on marketing and

advertising your business offline

The number of part time or casual

employees in your business

The $ value of spending on marketing and

advertising your business online

The sale of products /services online

Investment in IT systems & processes

The sales of products/ services offline

The amount you pay the employees in your

business

The number or variety of products or

services offered by your business

Focus on customer acquisition strategies

Focus on customer retention strategies

Your prices and margins on products/

services sold

Where businesses plan to increase investment

Feb 14 Aug 13 Feb 13 May 12 Feb 12



Key differences

While traditionalists were less likely to be increasing investments in any of the nominated areas, those more likely to be increasing investments included:

• Small to medium sized businesses

• Businesses whose revenue was up in the previous 12 months

• Manufacturing & wholesale businesses

• Start-up businesses

• Importers

• Users of cloud computing

• Businesses with an online presence

• Businesses with staff taking payments on the road

• Businesses with a business plan

Businesses planning to grow their business

Planned increase in focus/investment by age of business and size of business

Total Start ups Establishing Maturing Established Sole

operators

Micro Small Medium

Prices/margin on products/services 30% 33% 37% 32% 27% 29% 34% 29% 46%

Customer retention strategies 28% 34% 29% 28% 25% 27% 26% 44% 41%

Customer acquisition strategies 27% 45% 30% 22% 22% 24% 29% 45% 42%

No. or variety of products offered 24% 35% 30% 23% 18% 22% 25% 37% 39%

Amount employees are paid 23% 23% 23% 21% 20% 14% 37% 59% 56%

Sale of products/services offline 22% 38% 29% 21% 15% 20% 24% 33% 59%

Investment in IT systems/processes 21% 32% 21% 14% 18% 17% 25% 39% 52%

Sale of products/services online 20% 25% 25% 16% 18% 17% 26% 20% 37%

Value of online marketing 18% 25% 15% 18% 17% 17% 20% 27% 27%

No. of part time/casual staff 18% 23% 31% 16% 12% 14% 22% 37% 26%

Value of offline marketing 17% 23% 17% 16% 14% 16% 16% 26% 12%

Working with business advisors 16% 21% 22% 14% 12% 15% 15% 26% 20%

No. of full time employees 11% 21% 14% 8% 6% 5% 17% 39% 61%




Planned increase in focus/investment by industry type

Agribusiness

Business, prof. &

property services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal

& warehousing

Prices/margin on products/services 26% 30% 38% 21% 32% 34% 36%

Customer retention strategies 19% 27% 22% 32% 41% 34% 37%

Customer acquisition strategies 15% 25% 21% 44% 48% 29% 30%

No. or variety of products offered 11% 19% 21% 21% 56% 37% 28%

Amount employees are paid 21% 18% 27% 30% 30% 27% 37%

Sale of products/services offline 17% 14% 22% 38% 49% 30% 26%

Investment in IT systems/processes 19% 17% 20% 41% 25% 22% 25%

Sale of products/services online 5% 19% 14% 14% 36% 34% 37%

Value of online marketing 1% 19% 15% 23% 24% 28% 24%

No. of part time/casual staff 11% 14% 19% 18% 35% 22% 17%

Value of offline marketing 7% 19% 12% 14% 19% 21% 14%

Working with business advisors 10% 12% 18% 26% 22% 23% 9%

No. of full time employees 6% 5% 18% 18% 28% 13% 9%




Fuel prices still top business pressure

When operators were asked what elements of the business environment they expected

to cause an extreme amount or quite a lot of pressure on their business in the next 12

months, fuel prices again emerged as the topmost pressure at 25%, albeit down

significantly from 35% the previous wave.

The next four pressures were weighted similarly, and were similar to the last wave.

Interest rates slipped into the top five this wave while attracting new customers has

dropped out of the top five (previously number two). The next four pressures after fuel

prices were:

� Interest rates (22%)

� Competitive activity (21%)

� Cashflow (21%)

� Price margins and profitability (21%)

Attracting new customers has declined as a business pressure from 27% last wave to

19% this wave. The pressure of cash flow has dropped in terms of magnitude since the

last wave from 26% to 21%, as did retaining existing customers (down from 20% to 13%)

and exchange rates (down from 15% to 12%). No issues were perceived to have

increased in terms of the magnitude of the pressure they were applying to businesses.

Fuel prices

Fuel prices were a greater pressure for:

• Transport, postal and warehousing businesses (58%)

• Manawatu/Wanganui businesses (44%)

• Franchisees (40%)

• Businesses whose revenue was down in the preceding 12 months (37%)

• Rural businesses (37%)

14%

17%

13%

17%

18%

15%

24%

21%

26%

23%

23%

25%

35%

16%

17%

13%

20%

18%

22%

27%

23%

29%

27%

23%

21%

35%

14%

17%

14%

18%

18%

21%

25%

20%

26%

25%

27%

19%

36%

15%

15%

11%

17%

17%

16%

24%

20%

24%

27%

23%

17%

27%

13%

15%

11%

20%

16%

16%

27%

17%

23%

26%

24%

22%

35%

9%

10%

12%

12%

12%

13%

14%

15%

16%

19%

20%

21%

21%

21%

22%

25%

Upgrading/updating IT software,

systems or processes

Marketing and customer relationships

Exchange rates

Managing bad debt

Cost of online technologies

Retaining existing customers

Upgrading/updating hardware or other

equipment

Business finance/funding/overdraft

Timing of customer payments

Attracting new customers

Meeting your tax obligations

Price margins & profitability

Cashflow

Competitive activity

Interest rates

Fuel prices

Pressure points (% extreme/lot)

Feb 14 Aug 13 Feb 13 May 12 Feb 12 Sept 11



Interest rates

Interest rates were a greater pressure to:

• Waikato based businesses (38%)

• Agribusinesses (34%)

• Businesses who reported a revenue fall in the preceding 12 months (31%)


• Maturing businesses (29%)

Cash flow

Cash flow was a greater pressure for:

• Businesses who reported a revenue fall in the previous 12 months (38%)

• Agribusinesses (38%)

• Exporters (33%)


• Establishing businesses (31%)

Price margins and/or profitability

Price margins and/or profitability were a greater pressure to:

• Transport, postal, warehousing businesses (41%)

• Businesses who reported a revenue fall in the preceding 12 months (40%)

• Manawatu/Wanganui (38%) and Bay of Plenty businesses (32%)

• Operators trying to grow the business (32%)

Competitive activity

Competitive activity was a greater pressure for:

• Businesses who reported a revenue fall in the previous 12

months (35%)

• Operators trying to grow their business (33%)

• Importers (33%)

• Businesses with a website (31%)

• Wellington businesses (30%)



Pressure points by industry

Agribusiness

Business, prof. &

property services

Construction &

trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal

& warehousing

Fuel prices 35% 17% 31% 31% 25% 16% 58%

Interest rates 34% 23% 17% 26% 16% 18% 18%

Competitive activity 12% 21% 18% 24% 31% 30% 29%

Cashflow 38% 15% 22% 11% 24% 26% 18%

Price margins & profitability 30% 17% 20% 3% 25% 29% 41%

Meeting your tax obligations 23% 17% 27% 14% 19% 22% 28%

Attracting new customers 9% 19% 21% 24% 20% 24% 25%

Timing of customer

payments 19% 16% 23% 12% 22% 11% 11%

Business finance/funding/

overdraft 27% 10% 17% 3% 18% 23% 14%

Upgrading/updating

hardware/other equipment 21% 8% 14% 9% 12% 21% 17%

Retaining existing customers 4% 14% 10% 18% 10% 22% 31%

Cost of online technologies 14% 9% 14% 9% 16% 9% 17%

Managing bad debt 10% 12% 14% 6% 12% 15% 18%

Exchange rates 34% 4% 7% 15% 12% 13% 12%

Marketing & customer

relationships 5% 9% 9% 21% 6% 18% 21%

Upgrading/updating IT

software, systems, processes 11% 7% 8% 6% 7% 14% 12%




CLOUD COMPUTING & DIGITAL ECONOMY

Almost a third of operators use cloud computing at least some of the

time

As shown in the chart below, 32% of operators stated they use cloud

computing at least some of the time.

Businesses more likely to be using cloud computing included:

• Finance & insurance (56%)

• Business, professional, property businesses (39%)

• Businesses with a social media site (50%) or website (44%)

• Wellington based businesses (45%)

• Metropolitan based businesses (40%)

• Businesses taking payments on the road (40%)

Intentions to take up cloud computing by those currently not using it were

low, with only 6% stating they were intending to use cloud computing for

their business in the next 12 months.

Base: non-cloud users (n=704)

Those operators more likely to be considering cloud computing included:

• Small businesses (16%)


6% 8%

18%

69%

Use of cloud computing

Yes -all of the time

Yes -most of the time

Yes -sometimes

No

6%

57%

37%

Intention to use cloud computing in next 12

months

Yes

No

Don't know



All operators were asked about which of a number of online services they currently used. As can be seen in the table below, over 80% of operators were using

email and online banking, but proportions of businesses using other online services dropped to 25% or lower there-after. Cloud computing users were, as

expected, more likely to be using these online services.

Total Cloud computing

users Non-cloud

computing users

Email 86% 84% 87%

Online banking 82% 81% 82%

Voice communication over the Internet (e.g. Skype or VOIP) 25% 38% 19%

File sharing (e.g. Dropbox) 25% 47% 15%

E-commerce - buying products/services online 24% 35% 19%

Online file back-up (e.g. documents, photos, videos) 23% 45% 13%

Social networking sites for business purposes 22% 35% 16%

Email marketing 21% 29% 17%

Instant messaging 20% 28% 17%

File storage (not just back-up copies) 17% 35% 9%

Online accounting solutions 14% 28% 7%

Online video (e.g. watching or creating videos) 14% 22% 10%

E-commerce - selling products/services online 13% 18% 10%

Search engine marketing (SEM) / search engine optimisation (SEO) 13% 19% 11%

Web video conferencing 8% 17% 5%

Blogs (e.g. company blog or external) 6% 11% 4%

Don't know 3% 1% 4%


Some of the key differences noted are detailed below:

• Gen Y (63%) and Gen X (79%) operators were much less likely to use email than Baby Boomers (90%) and Traditionalists (93%)

• Gen X operators were more likely to be using online accounting solutions (21% compared to 5% of Traditionalists)

• Other than email and online banking, rural businesses were less likely to use online services in general

• Retail and hospitality businesses were much more likely to use online services than construction and trades businesses in general



• Businesses with a social media site or website were much more likely

to use online services than those businesses that did not have an online

presence

Almost half of New Zealand businesses have no online presence

Operators were asked about their online presence in terms of having their own

business website and their own business-focused social media site. As can be

seen in the chart opposite, almost half of New Zealand SMEs do not have an

online presence (statistically consistent with the last wave).

The question has only been asked in its current form for two waves, but as can

be seen from the chart opposite (below), the proportion of businesses with a

website has begun to increase, with 41% of businesses now having a website.

Gen Y and Gen X were much more likely to have their own online presence

(66% and 53% respectively), while Traditionalists (68%) much more likely to

have no online presence at all.

Other segments more likely to have an online presence included:


• Manufacturing and wholesale (80%) and retail and hospitality

businesses (67%)

• Importers (78%) and exporters (56%)

• Businesses using cloud computing (65%)

• Operators trying to grow the business (63%)

• Businesses whose revenue was up in the last 12 months (57%)



Key differences by industry, operator age and size of business are shown on

the following page.

50%

24%

9%14%

3%

47%

25%

7%16%

5%

Do not have an

online presence

Only have a

business

website

Only have a

social media site

for business

Have both a

business

website and

social media site

Don't know

% of business with an online presence

Aug 13 Feb 14

27%

35%32% 32% 32%

35% 34%38%

41%

23% 23%

Mar 10 Nov 10 Mar 11 Sept 11 Feb 12 May 12 Feb 13 Aug 13 Feb 14

Proportion of New Zealand businesses with an

online presence

Website Social media site



Please note: the question about having a social media site was only introduced in August 13

Agribusiness

Business, prof. &

property services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal &

warehousing

Do not have an online

presence 68% 51% 62% 35% 16% 23% 55%

Only have a business

website 16% 25% 18% 32% 52% 23% 24%

Only have a social media

site for business 2% 7% 7% 6% 7% 10% 3%

Have both a business

website & a social media

site for business

5% 13% 8% 21% 21% 34% 10%

Don’t know 9% 4% 5% 6% 4% 9% 8%


Total Gen Y Gen X Baby

Boomers

Traditionalists Sole

operators

Micro Small

Do not have an online presence 47% 29% 40% 48% 68% 54% 40% 12%

Only have a business website 25% 14% 25% 28% 17% 22% 22% 54%

Only have a social media site for

business 7% 20% 6% 6% 5% 8% 5% 5%

Have both a business website & a social

media site for business 16% 31% 22% 13% 7% 11% 25% 25%

Don’t know 5% 5% 7% 4% 3% 5% 7% 4%




Businesses with an online presence were asked which of a number of business

changes had occurred as a result.

As can be seen in the table opposite, having a business website was perceived

to have resulted in more customer leads and enquiries (55%), a more

professional brand image (53%) and made it easier for customers to do

business with them (51%). Having a social media site provided different

benefits, particularly allowing more interactions with customers (54%) and

increasing appeal to younger customers (39%).

Very few operators felt their website had no benefit to their business (9%),

but the proportion was higher in regards to receiving no benefit from a social

media site (16%).

In general, retail and hospitality businesses were more likely to perceive

greater benefits from having a website, and compared to the total, were

more likely to perceive a benefit in terms of making it easier for customers to

do business (64%), allowing the business to sell online (53%), increase income

or revenue (49%) and enabling access to more markets (45%).

Impact of online presence Result of having a

business website

(n=445)

Result of having a

social media site

(n=254)

Generated more customer enquiries

or leads in general 55% 37%

Enabled your business to have a more

professional brand image 53% 29%

Made it easier for customers to do

business with you 51% 30%

Allowed more interaction with

customers 41% 54%

Enabled you to compete better with

your competitors 35% 26%

Increased revenue or income in

general 33% 18%

Enabled access to more markets 27% 24% Allowed you to sell online to

customers 26% 16%

Increased your appeal to younger

customers 22% 39%

Enabled you to compete

internationally/opened your market

to international customers 22% 10%

Increased your appeal to younger

employees 9% 18%

Has not benefitted my business 9% 16%



Online technologies popular

Operators were also asked about the online business tools they used. Over half

(51%) reported using one or more smartphones in the business, and just over a

quarter (28%) used tablets.

Almost half the businesses (46%) were accepting online payments from

customers via internet banking, a shopping cart or mobile app, while a further

37% were buying products and services online. A variety of methods were used

to sell products online, with the most frequently used being the business’ own

website (16%). Retail and hospitality businesses were much more likely to use

these tools.

While over a third (38%) of New Zealand businesses were using some form of

social media, LinkedIn (24%) and Facebook (17%) were still well ahead of other

social media sites in popularity (5% for Google+ and 3% each for YouTube and

Twitter). Business, professional and property services operators (45%) were

much more likely to use social media than other industries, particularly

construction and trades (17%) and transport, postal and warehousing (15%)

and agribusinesses (21%).

Marketing tools were also popular, with 21% of operators conducting email

marketing, 19% using Internet search engines to promote their business via

SEO and 17% using SEM.

Online tools being used by businesses Feb 14 TECHNOLOGY

Use one or more smartphones 51%

Use one or more tablets (eg. iPad) 28%

INTERNET/EMAIL MARKETING

Conduct email marketing to potential/existing customers 21%

Use internet search engines to promote business website via SEO 19%

Use internet search engines to promote business website via SEM 17%

BUYING/SELLING ONLINE

Accept online payment from customers via internet banking, a

shopping cart or mobile app 46%

Buy products/services online 37%

Sell products/services online via your own website 16%

Sell products /services online via a website other than your own 12%

Sell products/services online via directories such as True Local,

Local List, Finda, etc 5%

Sell products and services online (online store only, no premises

for customers to visit) 4%

SOCIAL MEDIA (net) 38%

Network with business colleagues &/or clients on LinkedIn 24%

Connect with customers & fans via a business page on Facebook 17%

Share news & updates via a company blog 7%

Connect with customers & fans via a business page on Google+ 5%

Communicate via micro-blogging sites such as Twitter 3%

Connect with customers & fans via a business page on YouTube 3%

OTHER

Use Skype or VOIP to make free business phone calls 21%

Have internet access but do not do any/not interested in any of

above activities 17%



Tools by industry type

Agribusiness

Business, prof.

& property

services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal &

warehousing

Use one or more smartphones 35% 54% 54% 62% 54% 39% 39%

Use one or more tablets (e.g. iPad) 23% 28% 26% 35% 29% 30% 20%

Conduct email marketing 9% 24% 7% 38% 40% 21% 3%

Promote business website via SEO 7% 19% 16% 15% 23% 31% 29%

Promote business website via SEM 8% 16% 20% 15% 23% 22% 11%

Accept online payment from customers via

internet banking, a shopping cart or mobile app 35% 45% 52% 30% 57% 57% 25%

Buy products/services online 38% 34% 40% 26% 38% 40% 38%

Sell products/services online via own website 4% 18% 8% 5% 33% 30% 19%

Sell products /services online via other website 7% 13% 8% 3% 11% 24% 12%

Sell products/services online via directories 2% 5% 4% 0% 3% 12% 7%

Sell products and services online store only 0% 5% 2% 3% 3% 7% 3%

SOCIAL MEDIA (net) 21% 45% 17% 53% 41% 47% 15%

Network with colleagues/clients on LinkedIn 10% 35% 9% 47% 32% 11% 3%

Connect with customers/fans via Facebook 9% 14% 7% 12% 15% 39% 7%

Share news & updates via a company blog 6% 7% 2% 12% 3% 9% 0%

Connect with customers & fans via Google+ 2% 4% 5% 5% 6% 6% 3%

Communicate via micro-blogging sites (Twitter) 0% 5% 2% 0% 6% 3% 0%

Connect with customers & fans via YouTube 1% 3% 1% 0% 4% 5% 3%

Use Skype/VOIP for free business phone calls 17% 24% 13% 36% 22% 16% 11%

Have internet access but do not do any/not

interested in any of above activities 25% 14% 20% 20% 12% 15% 25%




TELEWORKING

60% of the operators surveyed utilised some form of teleworking within their business

while 40% had employees working only from their business premises.

Teleworking was more likely to be used by:

• Business, professional and property services (76%) and construction & trades

businesses (71%)

• Gen Y-run businesses (75% - compared to only 49% of businesses operated by

Traditionalists)

• Start-ups (71%) and maturing businesses (69%)

• Wellington (70%) and Auckland based businesses (69%)

• Businesses using cloud computing (67%)

• Regional/suburban based businesses (66%)

• Sole operators (65%)


Agribusiness

Business, prof. &

property services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal

& warehousing

Work mainly from another

location 25% 44% 55% 17% 19% 14% 45%

Work partly from home/ partly

from another location 15% 33% 16% 29% 39% 13% 17%

Only work from business

premises 62% 24% 29% 54% 47% 72% 38%

35%

27%

40%

Incidence of teleworking

Work mainly from a

location other than

business premises

Work partly from home

and partly from the

business premises

Only work from the

business premises



REVENUE COLLECTION

Credit card facilities only offered by less than a quarter of operators

In a new question this wave, operators were asked how they currently took

payments from customers. Direct debit facilities emerged as the most frequently

offered method, with two thirds of operators (67%) nominating this option. Cheque

facilities were also offered by 58% of operators and cash by 53% of operators. Credit

card facilities were well down on the list at 24%.

Having no credit card facilities was not seen to have been an issue for New Zealand

operators. Only 4% of operators thought they had ever lost customers because they

did not have credit card facilities, and while 11% had always offered credit card

facilities, 75% of operators did not think they had ever lost customers because of a lack of

credit card facility. In addition, 83% of operators currently not offering credit card facilities did

not think they would have made any more sales if they had offered these facilities.

Operators least enamoured to credit cards included:

Offer credit

card

facilities

Never lost a customer

by not having a credit

card facility

Do not think they would have

made more sales if they had a

credit card facility

TOTAL 24% 75% 83%

Construction & trades 12% 86% 86%

Rural 13% 83% 90%

Traditionalists 14% 84% 91%

Work at other locn 17% 81% 80%

Sole operators 18% 81% 82%

Agribusiness 6% 85% 92%

Established

businesses

24% 81% 88%

Offer

credit card,

24%

Don't offer

credit card,

76%

67%58%

53%

24% 23%18%

Direct debit Cheque Cash Credit card EFTPOS Other

Payment options offered

83% of these do not think they

would have made more sales if

they had a credit card facility



Retail and hospitality businesses were more likely to state they had lost customers

because they had not had credit card facilities (16%) and were also more likely to state

they had always had credit card facilities (36%).

Operators not offering credit card facilities were also asked why they did not. The main

reason nominated was that they were simply happy with other payment methods

(41%), while the cost of processing credit card payments was mentioned by 24% of

operators.

To further understand usage of mobile credit card payments, operators were asked

about where they worked and how they took payments from customers on the road.

While almost half of businesses that spent some time away from the business

premises spent some time on the road (46%), of these almost one third (29%) took

payments from customers while they were on the road.

Base: Businesses that work from locations other than the business premises (n=621) Base: Businesses that work on the road (n=289)

Yes, 46%No, 54%

Work on the road

Yes,

29%

No, 71%

Take payments on the road

Reasons for not offering credit card

payments

(n=772)

I am happy taking payments in other ways 41%

Cost of processing credit card payments 24%

Can't be bothered with the difficult bank process to

get a credit card facility 12%

Haven't got around to setting up a credit card facility 5%

I collect payments while on the road and don't have

mobile credit card facility 4%

Need to take credit card payments while on the road

but don't know how to make that happen 1%

Other (predominantly not relevant to their industry) 31%

Don't know 9%



INVOICING AND COLLECTING PAYMENTS

With close to two thirds of New Zealand businesses issuing invoices most of the time, creating invoices and getting

payments from customers is a critical element of business success. Hence, the Business Monitor explored this

issue in more depth this wave. As can be seen in the chart opposite, over half New Zealand businesses always

issue invoices and issue them within a week of completing the job or delivering the service or product.

Results varied considerably by industry with construction and trades and manufacturing and wholesale businesses

most likely to always issue invoices and retail and hospitality and agribusiness issuing invoices less frequently.

Finance and insurance businesses were most likely to say they never issued invoices.

Construction and trades businesses were not as quick to get invoices out however, with only 38% of these

businesses issuing the invoice within 48 hours. Other segments less likely to invoice within 48 hours included

agribusinesses (35%), finance and insurance (29%) and transport, postal and warehousing businesses (31%).


When invoices issued by industry

type

Agribusiness

Business, prof.

& property

services

Construction

& trades

Finance &

insurance

Manufacturing

& wholesale

Retail &

hospitality

Transport, postal &

warehousing

Always 42% 57% 85% 41% 78% 32% 52%

Usually 13% 8% 11% 6% 9% 15% 12% Some of the time 12% 7% 1% 8% 5% 22% 14%

Rarely 16% 13% 1% 12% 5% 23% 10%

Never 17% 15% 2% 33% 3% 8% 13%

56%

10%10%

12%

12%

Never

Rarely

Some of the time

Usually

Always

29%

18%

24%

25%

1%3%

No set timeframe

End of the quarter

Within one month

Within one week

Up to 48 hours

Same day

Issuing invoices



Evidence shows that shorter invoice terms result in more customers paying on time

Operators were asked to define their standard invoice

terms and also the proportion of their customers that

paid later than the stated invoice terms. The results

showed that those businesses with invoice terms of

14 days or less had a smaller proportion of customers

paying later. 36% of operators said their invoice terms

were less than 14 days, and 77% of these reported

less than 25% of their customers paying later than

those invoice terms. Only 14% of operators had

invoice terms greater than 30 days.


On average, businesses are spending 15 hours a month on invoicing and receiving payments

Operators were asked to state how many hours were

spent per month on average on each of three tasks.

Generating and sending invoices and receipts took an

average of 6.3 hours a month, but then businesses spent

another 6.8 hours per month entering this data into an

accounting software package or spreadsheet. In

addition, 2.5 hours per month was spent chasing up late

payers.


The size of the business was the main indicator of how many hours were spent on these tasks. The averages above show the considerable time spent by small and

medium sized businesses on these issues.

% of customers paying

later than invoice

terms

Total Up to 14

days

15 - 30

days

31 - 45

days

More

than 45

days

Don’t

know

TOTAL 100% 36% 45% 10% 4% 4%

Less than 25% 70% 77% 70% 67% 68% 44%

25 - 49% 11% 9% 11% 17% 0% 2%

50 - 74% 7% 7% 6% 9% 0% 3%

75% - 89% 2% 2% 2% 1% 11% 0%

90% or more 4% 3% 5% 5% 0% 0%

Don't know 6% 2% 6% 2% 21% 51%

Time spent on average per month Total Sole

operator

Micro

business

Small

business

Medium

business

Generating & sending invoices and receipts 6.3 3.9 6.4 20.4 20.4

Entering invoices & receipts information

into your accounting package/ spreadsheet,

over and above generating and sending

invoices and receipts

6.8 3.3 6.0 18.7 61.5

Chasing customers for late payments 2.5 1.3 1.7 9.7 14.6

TOTAL 15.6 8.5 14.1 48.8 96.5



Mobile apps have potential to save time

Operators were asked about how much time they thought they would save with a mobile app that allowed them to issue invoices, receive payments on credit

cards, debit cards and EFTPOS and send receipts via email or

SMS. They were also asked about an additional option where

the app automatically entered this transaction information

into their accounting software.

On average, operators thought they would save 5.5 hours per

month with the app, and would save an additional 7.5 hours

per month if the app also automatically entered the

transaction information into their accounting software.

Again, differences by size of business were significant, but

not as significant in terms of the proportion of total hours

spent on the task.

Time saved on average per month Total Sole

operator

Micro

business

Small

business

Medium

business

App that allowed you to issue invoices,

receive payments on credit card, debit

cards and EFTPOS and send receipts via

email or SMS

5.5 5.0 4.5 8.2 13.9

Proportion of time saved 87% 128% 70% 40% 68%

App that allowed you to issue invoices,

receive payments on credit card, debit

cards and EFTPOS and send receipts via

email or SMS and also automatically

entered the transaction information into

their accounting software

7.5 7.3 4.9 9.3 26.7

Proportion of time saved 110% 221% 82% 50% 43%



BUSINESS ASPIRATIONS, PLANNING AND SUCCESS

Just under half of NZ business owners have a business plan

In a new question this wave, business owners were asked about the existence of

a business plan. Just under half (47%) said they had a business plan, with Gen X

business owners being far less likely than others to have a plan (38% compared to

53% of Baby Boomers and 51% of Traditionalists). Businesses with a website

(56%) or social media site (60%) were much more likely to have a business plan,

as did business owners who were trying to grow their business (58%).

For those with a plan, the advantages were many, with operators nominating an

average of five benefits of having a business plan. The table opposite shows that

the key benefits of having a business plan were to think more realistically and

objectively about the business (57%), identify areas that need assistance or

changing (54%), allows a focus on growing the business (50%) and enables

business owners to manage their risks (50%). Importantly, only 2% of business

owners stated they had not seen any benefits from the development of a

business plan.

Half the operators surveyed were in business as a lifestyle choice rather

than trying to grow the business or pursue a passion

Operators were asked to define the long terms goals of the business in terms of

whether it was more of a lifestyle choice, they wanted to grow the business or

were pursuing a passion. Half the operators stated the business was more of a lifestyle choice, rather than any specific desire to grow the business. Around a third

of operators stated they were trying to grow the business, particularly the following segments:

• Micro (48%), small (61%) and medium businesses (77%) compared to only 25% of sole operators

• Manufacturing (52%) and transport, postal and warehousing businesses (51%)

Benefits of having a business plan (n=381)

Makes me think realistically, objectively and unemotionally

about my business 57%

Allows me to identify areas that need assistance or changing 54%

Allows me to focus on growing the business 50%

Enables me to manage my risks 50%

Ensures focus on the mission, vision and goals of the business 48%

Helps me determine the best way to allocate resources 44%

Enables me to see opportunities clearly, rather than making

assumptions 44%

Provides a detailed plan for utilising my budget 43%

Provides me with good insights into the market I operate

within 34%

Ensures my partner and/or staff and I are working off the

same page 32%

Provides a detailed plan for marketing my business 29%

Provides me with the right information to apply for business

finance 28%

Allows other parties to invest in the business 7%

Have not seen any benefits 2%



• Exporters (49%) and importers (48%)

• Businesses with a website or social media site (47% each)

• Users of cloud accounting (40%)

Operators trying to grow the business were also asked to define what business growth actually meant to them. As can be seen in the table below, increasing

revenue and profitability were the two key definitions of business growth with 75% and 73% respectively. They were also the top two issues for every segment.

Definition of business growth (n=339)

Improving revenue 75%

Improving profitability 73%

Having a team/systems in place that enable me to have

work/life balance 41%

Improving market share 35%

Having better results from marketing 28%

Expanding range of products/services 27%

Becoming more visible online 26%

Increasing number of staff 25%

Becoming more visible offline 20%

Catering for more geographic regions 14%

Opening a shopfront 3%

Listing on the NZX 2%

Lifestyle

choice, 50%Grow the

business,

34%

Pursuing a

passion, 16%

Business Goal



Over two thirds of operators rated their business as successful

Operators were also asked to rate the success of their business, with 70% rating it

either very successful (7%) or quite successful (62%).

Operators more likely to rate their business as successful included:

• Businesses earning more than $1million in revenue (90%)


• Christchurch based businesses (83%)

• Businesses whose revenue had increased in the previous 12 months (83%)

• Established businesses (76%)

• Businesses with a website (76%)

• Businesses with a business plan (75%)

All operators were asked to nominate what strategies they felt were critical to a

business being successful. Basic common sense was seen as critical by 70% of

operators, but getting a good work/life balance and having a good understanding

of the market and competitors was also seen as critical (60% and 59%

respectively).

Small and medium sized businesses were much less likely to consider common

sense the most critical strategy (54%), and placed more reliance on having

talented staff (71%), strong leadership (66%) and a strong management team

(64%).

Critical strategies for business success (n=1026)

Common sense 70%

Work/life balance 60%

Good understanding of the market and competitors 59%

A supportive family 48%

Quality/range of products & services 42%

Having talented staff 39%

Strong leadership 36%

Solid business plan 34%

A strong management team 26%

Online presence 25%

Clever marketing activity 23%

Targeting the right geographic region/s 22%

Business mentor/adviser 17%

Using accounting software 16%

Very

successful,

7%

Quite

successful,

62%

Neutral, 27%

Unsuccessful,

2%

Business Success



AWARENESS AND PERCEPTIONS OF ACCOUNTING QUALIFICATIONS

Operators were asked their levels of awareness of New Zealand’s key

accounting qualifications. As can be seen from the chart opposite,

awareness levels beyond Chartered Accountant were limited. While

91% had at least some level of awareness of this qualification,

between 42% - 64% of operators were unaware of the other

qualifications.

Perceptions of these qualifications were also minimal, with around

half of the operators being unable to nominate a specific qualification

for each of the three statements. Of those nominated, Chartered

Accountant understandably had the largest positive response, but the

CPA qualification appeared slightly stronger than the others given the

similar levels of awareness.

2% 1% 1%

18%8% 8% 10% 6%

71%

49% 46% 43%

28%

9%

42% 46% 47%64%

Chartered

Accountant (CA)

Associate Chartered

Accountant (ACA)

Assn of Certified

Chartered

Accountants (ACCA)

Certified Practicing

Accountant (CPA)

Accounting

Technician (AT)

Awareness of NZ accounting qualifications

I hold the qualification Know a lot about it

Know a little about it Never heard of it

50%

49%

54%

14%

6%

8%

1%

1%

1%

3%

7%

6%

4%

5%

4%

5%

8%

5%

23%

31%

25%

Is your preferred accounting qualification when selecting a

business partner or an employee

Provides assurance of the highest level of accounting

Provides the highest level of business insights

Perceptions of NZ accounting qualifications

CA

CPA

ACA

ACCA

AT

None of these

Don't know



END OF FINANCIAL YEAR (EOFY) PREPARATION

Operators were asked questions this wave with regard to their end of financial year (EOFY)

reporting. Work started on this important task anywhere from more than a month prior

(27%) to more than two months after (10%); with 52% starting before the EOFY and 39%

starting after (8% did not know when they started).

There was very little variation by segment, although those with a business plan were more

likely to start preparing their EOFY requirements earlier, with 58% starting more than a

week before EOFY compared to 47% overall.

Over half the operators (55%) did not think they had made any time sacrifices in terms of

meeting their EOFY obligations, but 30% stated they had worked on weekends.

Established businesses were more likely to state they had not made any time sacrifices

(64% compared to 44% of start-ups). Finance and insurance businesses were also more

likely to state they had not made any sacrifices (77% compared to 44% of retail and

hospitality businesses).

When asked in what ways they would complete their EOFY obligations this year, 71% said

they would be using an accountant and 35% would be doing it themselves (presumably

some with the assistance of an accountant as this was a multiple response question). In

addition, 6% of operators said they would use a bookkeeper.

And in terms of trying to cut the time it takes to get the business ready for EOFY, the main

methodology that had been used was to employ an accountant (20%). Other tools used

included:

• Streamlining other processes – 11%

• Moving to an accounting software program (from Excel/paper) – 9%

• Moved to an online accounting software package (from a desktop version) – 6%

Time sacrifices to meet EOFY obligations (n=1026)

Worked weekends 30%

Worked beyond midnight 18%

Turned down an invitation to catch up with friends 13%

Been unable to take planned holidays 5%

Missed an important family event 4%

Hired additional staff 3%

Hired a babysitter for a significant amount of time 2%

None of the above 55%

Don’t know 6%

27%

20%

5%

6%

12%

11%

10%

8%

At least a month before EOFY

Between 1 - 4 weeks before EOFY

Within a week before EOFY

Within a week after EOFY

Within 1 - 4 weeks after EOFY

Within 1 - 2 months after EOFY

More than 2 months after EOFY

Don't know

EOFY preparation start time



INTERNET ACCESS AND

SATISFACTION

High levels of dissatisfaction with Internet speed and cost

Operators expressed significant dissatisfaction with both the speed and cost of

their Internet connection. 34% of operators were dissatisfied with the speed of

their plan, while 40% of operators were dissatisfied with the cost.

Operators more dissatisfied with the speed of the Internet included:


• Christchurch based (44%) and Otago/Southland businesses (53%)

Operators more dissatisfied with the cost of their Internet plan included:


Connection to Ultra-Fast Broadband(UFB)

Only 14% of operators said they were currently connected to the UFB fibre network, while 80% were not connected and 6% did not know. Connection levels were

much higher amongst the following groups:

• Gen Y operators (34%)

• Wellington based businesses (25%)

• Start-up businesses (24%)

• Exporters (21%) and importers (20%)

• Businesses with a social media site (20%) or a website (19%)


Almost two thirds (63%) of operators not connected tended to think that it would make

a positive impact on their business, particularly those using cloud computing (77%).

11%

5%

29%

27%

23%

27%

27%

30%

7%

10%

1%

2%

Speed

Cost of plan

Satisfaction levels with Internet

Very satisfied

Quite satisfied

Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied

Quite dissatisfied

15% 48% 30%

1%

6%

Impact of UFB fibre on business

Significant positive impact

Some positive impact

No impact

Negative impact



Key Benefits of Ultra-Fast Broadband

Operators were asked what benefits the UFB Fibre has or would have on

their business. The main benefits were associated with speed and reliability

– better download and upload speeds (59%) and improved Internet

connection (56%), while 23% of operators could see no benefits. Those

most likely not to see any benefits included:

• Construction & trades businesses (36%)

• Traditionalists (34%)

• Businesses without a website (30%)

• Businesses not using cloud computing (29%)

Operators that could see no positive impact of UFB on their business were

asked whether they would choose UFB if they were given the choice

tomorrow. The results showed only a limited uptake of the technology.

Key benefits of Ultra-Fast Broadband (n=1026)

Better download and upload speeds 59%

Improve internet connection 56%

Better access and share data 28%

Reduce costs on business phone, internet and inter-office

communication 27%

Better access to cloud computing solutions (eg cloud storage etc) 21%

Allow business to use VOIP/Internet based telephone system 16%

Enable better video conferencing 15%

Boost staff productivity 13%

Enable more people to work remotely/not on the business

premises 11%

Enable more e-commerce activity 9%

Open up export opportunities 3%

Other 1%

Can see no benefits 23%

8%

20%

30%

30%

11%

UFB because it's the fastest possible

Faster broadband than what I have now but don't

care if it's not as fast as the UFB

Don't care about having faster broadband

I'm not familiar enough with these services to

make an informed decision

Don't know

If the choice was available tomorrow?



WORK-LIFE BALANCE

New Zealand operators less satisfied with their work life balance

than they were six months ago

In a time when expected revenue increases have reached a higher level

than recent times and expectations about the economy have also

improved, New Zealand operators’ perceptions of their work life balance

have declined.

Although still positive, only 59% of operators surveyed were satisfied with

their work-life balance (41% quite satisfied; 18% very satisfied), but 26%

are now dissatisfied (6% very dissatisfied and 20% quite dissatisfied)

compared to only 16% in August 2013.

Those segments least satisfied with their work life balance included:

• Gen X operators (52% - compared to 75% of Traditionalists)

• Metropolitan based operators (52%)

• Businesses aspiring to grow (51%)

• Businesses whose revenue was down in the last 12 months (49%)

• Retail and hospitality businesses (46%)

• Northland based operators (35%)

64%

-16%

59%

-26%

TOTAL SATISFIED

TOTAL DISSATISFIED

Work-Life Balance

Aug-13 Feb-14



GOVERNMENT

Less than one quarter of operators (24%) expressed dissatisfaction with the

level of government support for businesses such as theirs.

Dissatisfaction has declined steadily since September 2011, and the drop of

4% from last wave was also statistically significant.

Dissatisfaction levels were fairly consistent across all the various business

categories. However, the following differences were noted:

• Businesses that reported a revenue fall in the last 12 months were

more dissatisfied (42%)

• Transport, postal and warehousing businesses were more dissatisfied

(41%)

Operators were also asked about policies that might influence their voting intentions for or against the party promoting them. As can be seen in the table

following, the most popular initiatives were ‘reduced prices for unlimited data broadband’ (75%) and ‘simplification of provisional tax rules and processes’ (72%),

‘simplification of the PAYE rules and processes’ (59%), ‘introduction of tighter controls on foreign purchases of New Zealand land and infrastructure’ (55%) and

‘Government backed loans to small business start-ups’ (54%).

At the other end of the scale, ‘the introduction of a capital gains tax’ (64%), ‘moves to raise the superannuation entitlement age’ (46%) and ‘removing the 90 day

trial period for new employees’ (43%) were more likely to cause operators to vote against the party proposing them.

34%31% 38%

17%

34%

29% 30% 29% 28%

24%


Dissatisfaction with Government support



Policies or initiatives that business operators would vote for/against For Against

Reduced prices for unlimited data broadband 75% 2%

Simplification of provisional tax rules and processes to make it easier for businesses to accurately

determine and meet their tax obligations

72% 3%

Simplification of the PAYE rules and processes to make it easier for businesses to accurately pay their

employees

59% 2%

Introduction of tighter controls on foreign purchases of New Zealand land and infrastructure 55% 13%

Government backed loans to small business start-ups 54% 8%

A proportion of Government procurement contracts being assigned to small businesses 47% 7%

A ‘cash accounting’ tax system for small businesses 38% 7%

Continued partial sales of state assets 32% 37%

Introduction of a single Trans-Tasman currency 29% 34%

The introduction of a single New Zealand Business Number (NZBN) for all businesses 28% 7%

Introducing GST for online purchases from offshore retailers 27% 39%

The introduction of a single state-owned power (electricity) buyer for SMEs 24% 31%

Removing the 90 day trial period for new employees 23% 43%

More Government intervention into the value of the NZ$ dollar 22% 34%

Moves to raise the superannuation entitlement age to 67 21% 46%

Introduction of a Capital Gains Tax 16% 64%



Satisfaction with Local Council support

Operators were asked about their level of satisfaction with Local Council

support in terms of helping their business succeed. As can be seen in the chart

opposite, around half of the operators (48%) were neutral on this issue, with

only 16% being satisfied and twice as many (33%) being dissatisfied. These

figures remained statistically unchanged since the last wave.

Dissatisfaction levels were fairly consistent across all the various business

categories. However, the following differences were noted:

• Businesses that reported a revenue fall in the last 12 months were more

dissatisfied (45%)

• Finance and insurance businesses were less dissatisfied (15%)

Operators were also asked about what Local Council services they had used in

the last 12 months for their business. The most frequently nominated service was roads (34%),

followed by sewerage and refuse collection (24%), while 38% stated they had used none of

the local council services nominated for their business.

Ratings of the customer service experience by those who had accessed their services was

quite low with 39% rating the service only fair or poor.

Local Council service departments used (n=1025)

Roads 34%

Sewerage and refuse collection 24%

Local regulations 18%

Libraries 17%

Water reticulation 14%

Town planning 14%

Parks 13%

Recreation services 10%

Community and economic development 7%

Other 1%

None of the above 38%

Don't know 4%

11%

22%

48%

14%

2% 2%

Satisfaction with Local Council support

Very dissatisfied

Quite dissatisfied

Neither

Quite satisfied

Very satisfied

Don't know

5% 18% 31% 29% 10% 7%

Customer service experience from Local Council

Excellent Very good Good Fair Poor Don't know



Preferred way of completing Government transactions online is still via a desktop

Operators preferred completing business transactions, even simple ones, via a desktop computer, but the flexibility of using a variety of devices is also required

with 35% - 45% of operators stating they would use a combination of devices.

Consistently, around 5% of operators would not use the Internet for any of the nominated transactions and 12% – 15% did not know what they would use.

Traditionalists were the most likely group to nominate that they would not use the Internet (11% - 17%).

39%

40%

32%

1%

1%

2%

4%

3%

4%

39%

35%

45%

5%

6%

4%

12%

15%

13%

Completing a simple

government transaction (eg

filing an annual company

return)

Completing a more complex

government transaction ie. one

that requires a lot of steps &/or

accounting/payroll data (eg a

PAYE or GST return)

Finding out about your business

compliance obligations

Preferred method for completing Government

transactions

Desktop computer only

Mobile telephone only

Tablet

Depends/ combination of

devices

Would not use Internet /

some other approach

Don't know



About the study

The MYOB Business Monitor researches business performance and attitudes regarding areas such as profitability, cash flow, pipeline work, technology usage and

the government. This report presents the summary findings for key indicators from the MYOB Business Monitor comprising a national sample of 1,025 business

owners, managers and directors (operators), conducted from January 16 – February 10, 2014. The businesses participating in the online survey were both non-

employing and employing businesses. All data has been weighted by industry type, location and number of employees, which are in line with Statistics New

Zealand (New Zealand Business Demography Statistics: At February 2010: ISSN 1174-1988.)

This research report was prepared by Gundabluey Research and fieldwork was completed by Colmar Brunton (a Millward Brown Company) for Kristy Sheppard,

Public Relations & Corporate Affairs Manager – New Zealand, MYOB NZ Limited ([email protected] | www.myob.co.nz)

The generations were categorised as follows:

• Generation Y: 18 – 29 years of age

• Generation X: 30 – 49 years of age

• Baby boomers: 50 – 64 years of age

• Traditionalists: 65+ years of age

Length of time in business was categorised as per the following:

• Start up: in business fewer than 2 years

• Establishing: 2 to 5 years

• Maturing: 5 to 10 years

• Established: 10+ years

1 Caveat: There is high margin of error of +/-15% @ 20% on this small base 2 Other Industries, which have been combined to minimise their margin of error, include these sectors: Communication Services; Cultural & Recreational Services; Education;

Electricity, Gas & Water Supply Services; Health & Community Services; Mining; and Personal & Other Services

Industry Weighting No.

Agribusiness 15% 78

Business, Professional & Property Services 34% 359

Construction & trades 11% 130

Finance & insurance*1 6% 34

Manufacturing & Wholesale 8% 68

Retail & Hospitality 9% 107

Transport & Warehousing*1 3% 33

Other Industries**2 (incl. in total results) 14% 216

Total 100% 1,025

Number of Employees/Business Type Weighting No.

0 Employees/Sole Traders 69% 703

1-4 Employees/Micro Business 21% 216

5-19 Employees/Small Business 7% 81

20-199 Employees/Medium Business 3% 25

Total 100% 1,025

Location Weighting No.

Auckland 31% 349

Wellington 10% 120

Canterbury 13% 122

Rest of New Zealand 46% 434

Total 100% 1,025

Documents

THE VOICE OF NZ BUSINESS OWNERS & MANAGERS February … · 2020. 11. 22. · March 2011 September 2011 March 2012 May 2012 February 2013 August 2013 February 2014 Total New Zealand