So what can small businesses expect for 2012? My general advise continues to be cautious! While we are seeing some of the small business surveys showing optimism increasing and more importantly employment improving slightly, I worry that we have been lulled into a mode of thinking that the worst is over.
I believe that we are simply in the eye of the storm. I hope that the storm is dissipating, but I fear that the back wall of the eye will hit us sometime later this year. It may come as a result of the European debt crisis or it may come as a result of the looming Chinese credit crisis, but I fear it may hit us and his us hard.
That being said, we do need to get on with life. Things may actually improve, but even if they don’t the vast majority of small businesses will survive even if things get nasty.
Steve Strauss offers his take on trends for small businesses to watch at Business on Main. He sees mobile mania continuing to surge this year, a continued increase in the solopreneur (a.k.a., free-lancers, independent contractors), and an improvement in how Groupon works with small businesses.
He also is keeping on eye on the economy and has some concerns about the impact of the fall election.
It is a thoughtful article that is worth a careful read as you make your plans for this year.