{"id":6741,"date":"2020-01-02T10:06:28","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T15:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/?p=6741"},"modified":"2026-02-12T05:11:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T10:11:09","slug":"6-small-business-trends-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/6-small-business-trends-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"6 small business tech trends that will help you in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTrends & Insights<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t6 small business tech trends that will help you in 2020\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tSabuhi Gard<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In 2019, we saw the rise of a series of business tech trends. They included the cloud-based systems so you can work on the go and from any location; email automation to help keep track of who you have emailed; and email marketing platforms such as Mailchimp<\/a> and Klayvio<\/a>, so you can reach your customers with information that\u2019s relevant to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the start of the new decade, we look forward to six key trends that will help you as a small business owner in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Rise of the cloud<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Andrew Dark, director and co-owner of print wear and branding specialist Custom Planet, believes the use of cloud-based systems will continue be a business tech trend for 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says: \u201cCloud-based software is influencing the ways our staff can work, giving them more flexibility and allowing them to remote work with greater ease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFinance can chase payments, order stock, and have access to all our ordering information from anywhere. Sales can process orders, create quotes, and deal with clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel cloud-based systems and working from home can help staff to have a better work\/life balance and increase happiness in the workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same can be said of cloud-based accounting software<\/a>, which will allow you to stay on top of your accounts when you\u2019re on the go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Adoption of technology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Marketing consultant Nat Sharp is the founder of Sharp Thinking Marketing<\/a>. She says the adoption of technology will be a key business tech trend and challenge for small business owners in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMany businesses think that artificial intelligence<\/a> (AI) is still in its infancy, but as a small business owner, you can\u2019t afford to ignore it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAI can give you an incredible competitive edge improving response times and the whole customer experience. And in 2020, we will see a huge increase in chatbots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChatbots have traditionally been frowned upon by marketing industry experts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut as more social media platforms are permitting bots and as their sophistication has increased, it will become crucial for small businesses to deploy them to improve their customer experience and automate their business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBots can help qualify and nurture leads based on users\u2019 interactions rather than generating a constant stream of sales emails.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Automation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One thing that small business owners don\u2019t always have is time. Part of the reason for that is that they\u2019re busy following up on late invoices that haven\u2019t been paid and other manual processes that need to be dealt with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Sage-commissioned research, the average time lost to admin in the US in 4.8%.<\/a> Sound familiar to you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automation can be the answer to save time, so you can focus on more important tasks that help you to build your business. And it\u2019s likely to be a key trend for 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No matter whether it\u2019s down to using accounting software<\/a> so you don\u2019t have to follow up on invoices or reach your customers easily via email, automation will be one to watch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nat Sharp adds: \u201cSmart businesses know they need to capitalize on marketing automation. And I\u2019m not just talking about sending out your company newsletter using the latest email marketing software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose who know the sector understand they need to give their consumers more control over how and when they consume content and personalization is at the crux of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMarketing automation software has the ability to integrate your website, email marketing and your CRM system, ensuring a seamless and highly customizable customer experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\tLooking to grow your small business? Download our tips <\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n

4. Circular technology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Asad Hamir, co-founder at Klyk Tech<\/a>, believes \u2018circular technology<\/a>\u2019 will be a growing trend for 2020, as small business owners will be looking at ways to cut costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says: \u201cTechnology is one of the biggest money drains for small businesses; 45% see replacing their tech as beyond their current spending power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFortunately for them, as we approach 2020, there is a strong argument for businesses to move away from a linear consumption model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInstead of buying devices with cash, using them and then throwing them away, businesses are starting to use a circular model where tech is leased, refurbished, and repaired for re-use at the end of this first cycle. It\u2019s easy to see the benefits of this approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBuying technology in a linear way means small businesses spend money on expensive assets that will only depreciate and sap the cash flow of a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy contrast, the circular model spreads the cost of a workforce\u2019s devices. Instead of buying new technology, businesses leaders can reduce costs dramatically by purchasing refurbished tech or repairing devices to get more use from them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Robotic process automation (RPA)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another trend for small business owners to be aware of is robotic process automation (RPA). This is an evolution of automation and it involves the use of software with AI or machine learning to deal with a high volume of repetitive tasks, such as for finance teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve O\u2019Brien, managing director of Newicon<\/a>, a software design and development company, says RPA \u201chas already transformed organisations around the world\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He adds: \u201cIn its current form, it can reduce operational risk, improve productivity, cut costs\u2026 you get the idea. It\u2019s transformational. It\u2019s the stuff that we\u2019re working on with our clients as we speak. And the really exciting part is that RPA is undergoing a transformation of its own, both regarding the technology involved and the way it\u2019s being adopted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTechnology-wise, I think we\u2019re likely to see RPA draw more on advances in AI and machine learning. As a result, RPA will enter what others are calling RPA 2.0, or unassisted RPA \u2014 where, once set up, there\u2019s no human involvement necessary. This would usher in a whole new level of productivity increase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn top of that, look out for an increase in commoditized, plug-and-play hardware, alongside potential libraries of open-source automation software. Together, these two things could open up RPA to a much wider market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn terms of adoption, we\u2019re already seeing a huge push towards RPA from China, as it turns to technology to continue its world-leading levels of productivity. And we\u2019re likely to see the likes of Europe and the US investing in order to compete.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve Orrill is the partner account manager at finance automation company V1<\/a>. He says: \u201cRobotic process automation will become part of the daily working lives for small and medium-sized enterprises as finance departments strive to eliminate manual processes and work smarter, not harder, with their data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFinance teams have plenty of manual and repetitive tasks that involve searching and entering data as well as combining data from multiple sources \u2013 and these will be eliminated through automation. In fact, Gartner believes RPA can save finance departments 25,000 hours of avoidable work annually<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s more, RPA and humans will work together. RPA will do all the groundwork [data entry, searching and consolidation] to provide more accurate and timely data at people\u2019s fingertips. Humans will still need to have some oversight which means learning how to monitor RPA systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut the reward is gaining greater control and far more incisive decision-making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInvoice automation is a place for SMEs to start and, when integrated with cloud technology, it is the ideal first step to achieving an effective digital transformation strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Social commerce<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dhruvin Patel is an optometrist and the founder of Ocushield<\/a>, a screen protector company. He says 2020 will see the rise of social commerce: the ability to transact on Facebook chat or WhatsApp, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says: \u201cTools are coming out already showing capabilities of this, such as jumper.ai<\/a>, but I imagine the social platforms themselves will look to introduce this as they can earn revenue from this sort of transaction-based automation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt will also see AI and chat work closer together as most chat requests especially for e-commerce are usually the same typical questions \u2013 shipping, returns policy, etc, therefore this can quickly be identified and the correct response given.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion on small business tech trends<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As a small business owner, you have a choice as to whether you want adopt the growing trends of automation, artificial intelligence, more environmentally friendly practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With these trends becoming more prominent, it will be worth considering which ones are worth adopting for your business in 2020, so you can stay ahead of the curve, win new customers, and boost your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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