Vistaprint recently conducted a survey of small businesses to get some insight into what kind of things they were focusing on from a marketing perspective and what they might be willing to try in 2010.  The company also wanted to find out where small businesses went to get marketing knowledge, and what some of the perceived barriers were to trying new marketing methods like social media.  Done in conjunction with Hawk Partners the survey  looked at 300 various employers, including businesses with a sole proprietor, businesses with 2-10 employees, and over 10 employees for a true sampling of small business behavior.

Some of the key findings included:

• Email marketing will continue to be a very important marketing tactic, as small businesses cited it as one method that they have most commonly used and would be likely to try moving forward.
• Social media mediums like Twitter and Facebook are an area many small businesses will look to explore and capitalize on in the next 12 months. Time is the biggest perceived barrier to these efforts.
• Despite time and money being perceived barriers to starting websites for small businesses, it’s clear that their adoption rate will continue to increase, especially amongst micro and single proprietor businesses. Currently only 38% of small businesses have a website.
• YellowPage ads and listings continue to be frequently used, indicating that local search is very much an area of focus for small businesses, especially online.

The survey also found that small businesses might need more education when it comes to marketing, including resources they can tap into.  Almost 50% of the survey respondents don’t regularly seek any type of advice or counsel with regard to their marketing efforts. When they do, they typically look online for resources. Only 4% took advantage of their local Small Business Administration Office, and only 8% actively participated in their local chambers of commerce. Finally, many small businesses are interested in testing and tracking their marketing campaigns, but only 50% are currently doing so to ensure success.

Do any of these findings surprise you? Can you relate to any of them?  What kinds of things do you plan on doing in 2010 from a marketing perspective?