Northern Ireland Businesses find New Ways to Weather Economic Storm

As the recession continues to bite, almost half of Northern Ireland's small to medium sized businesses say that it has made their companies change the way they operate for the better. 46 per cent claim that the recession has encouraged them to focus on managing their costs better, being more innovative and marketing their businesses in a smarter way.

This is one of the key findings of the Business Pulse Survey 2009. The UK-wide survey, commissioned by BT, reveals that 46 per cent of local SMEs believe that the recession has changed their business for the better and 58 per cent are confident or very confident about their business prospects over the coming year.

However, the report has highlighted that businesses here continue to struggle with the impact of the recession with 57 per cent of Northern Ireland businesses specifying cost cutting as their most significant business change. Additionally seeking business advice is seen as a higher priority for Northern Ireland than any other part of the UK. Commenting on the Northern Ireland results of the survey James Devlin, Head of Business Sales, BT said: “This and other recent research shows that there is no doubt that firms are still struggling with the impact of the economic downturn. However it also demonstrates that business owners in Northern Ireland have used the recession as an opportunity to make positive changes.

'Local businesses have a strong desire to seek and share information even though availability of advice can be difficult to access. Small Business Week provides an ideal opportunity for local businesses to access information in areas such as cost cutting. At BT we endeavour to make advice more accessible for SMEs and we are hosting a Small Business Week Breakfast in association with the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce.'

Interestingly having a web presence was deemed more important to local SMEs than in any other area including London, with 77 per cent of respondents seeing it as very important. With more than one billion people estimated to have access to the internet, the web has potential to expose a company to a much larger audience than was previously possible. In the UK, more than 70 per cent of the population is now online and spends an average of 33 hours per month surfing the web.

'For local SMEs, websites have become an important shop window, offering an opportunity to attract customers who would not otherwise have knowledge of their business. 'With SMEs under pressure to survive the recession, technology has become a valuable tool. 36 per cent of NI businesses believe that it is essential to be at the forefront of technology adoption in order to advance their business. 52 per cent believe that faster broadband speeds have a positive impact on their operations. It allows even the smallest company operating in a garage or a home office to tap new opportunities in ways that were never possible before and compete with similar businesses across the UK,' said James Devlin.

Ann McGregor Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce said 'The survey shows that although the recession has had an impact on local businesses, the majority have been keen to adapt to the changing climate. Improved business processes and more effective use of technology and marketing is crucial in preparing for the upturn, when it comes.'

• The Business Pulse findings are from responses by more than 7,000 UK small firms were revealed today at the start of Small Business Week 2009, which is dedicated to championing commercial, industry and government support for the UK's 4.7 million-plus smaller enterprises.
• 75 per cent of all respondents believe that there will be an upturn in the economy by the end of next year, showing quite a lot of optimism.
• 54 per cent of local businesses see advice as essential in order to advance business.
• 51 per cent of local businesses, eight per cent more than the UK average, want to see an increase in access to finance.
• 45 per cent of businesses in Northern Ireland believe that we will begin to see an upturn in the economy by the end of 2010.

In association with the Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce BT will be holding a business breakfast on the 27th of October at BT Tower. Nick Forbes, MD of BT Solutions will be speaking about collaboration within businesses, illustrating the twin benefits of better productivity and speed of decision making. For more information about this event please contact Oonagh.OReilly@northernirelandchamber.com