Maximizing Growth in SMEs: Insights from the Pursue Study

Countercyclical investments are of great importance

The study reveals an interesting correlation: Despite the current economic uncertainty, 32 percent of the companies surveyed consciously decide to invest in new sales and marketing technologies. This may seem surprising at first glance, as it is these types of investments that are often canceled first in a weak economic environment. So these companies see investments in technology as a means to consolidate their position in the market. And this strategy seems to be working: Participants who worked at companies that hadn’t cut their budgets were 27 percent more likely to hit their annual sales goals.

Stay on top of things with CRMs

This apparent paradox raises a crucial question: Why are these companies embracing technology now, when caution might seem more appropriate? Studies from recent years have already shown an increased interest of small and medium-sized companies in promoting digitalization through the use of new technologies. Initially, these companies faced increased lead volumes due to the loss of in-person contact (such as Zoom meetings instead of customer visits). The task now is to coordinate these increased volumes using digital tools. This includes new communication and collaboration channels as well as customer relationship management tools (CRMs). These enable companies to maintain an overview despite the new challenges and to respond effectively to increased demand.

Second phase of digitalization initiated

The study also indicates that SMEs in sales are now ushering in the second phase of digitalization since the beginning of the pandemic. The previously implemented digitalization enabled these companies to achieve higher sales volumes, but this resulted in an increased workload for employees. Intelligent tools are increasingly being used in this context and, in particular, take on repetitive tasks such as creating contracts and coordinating customer appointments. This allows employees to focus more of their time on high-quality tasks.

Turbulent times present significant opportunities

Especially in economically turbulent times, companies often limit their marketing budgets. However, significant opportunities arise in such phases. When competitors reduce their marketing activities, competitors can significantly increase their visibility in the market. This enables companies not only to retain their existing customers – a necessity for survival, especially for small businesses – but also to attract new customers through targeted measures. An example of this are interactive webinars and online training, or targeted content marketing campaigns. Creating and distributing relevant content via blogs, videos or infographics can appeal to the target audience and increase engagement. This offers companies the opportunity to demonstrate their expertise while expanding their audience – all with relatively little additional effort and expense.

Ongoing work pressure and professional anxiety

Despite the aforementioned declining growth rate, the results of the survey are positive. In a year marked by a shortage of skilled workers, inflation, temporary fears of recession and delivery bottlenecks, almost two thirds of company managers across various sectors reported at least slight company growth. However, in some places this is happening at the expense of employees: the current report makes it clear that high workloads, unpaid overtime and the risk of burnout still exist. The results of this year’s study continue to reflect the fears and uncertainties faced by team members. 41 percent of them still worry that they may not be able to achieve their professional goals. This indicates ongoing pressure on employees’ shoulders.
In addition to fears of missing targets, another 23 percent of team members are worried about additional work that may come their way in the near future. This persistent fear of further stress shows that work stress can continue to increase despite already high demands, or at least that is what the respondents thesis.

Digitally against the threat of additional effort

To minimize the risk of burnout and maintain overall job satisfaction, investing in digital tools is the first step towards a long-term solution. However, the solution is not limited to purchasing licenses and implementing tools. In order to exploit the full potential of these tools and their automation technologies, it is essential that managers actively support the introduction process. This means introducing mandatory training, recording webinars and offering face-to-face one-on-one sessions to unlock the full potential of newly introduced tools and processes. It is also important to work with service providers who can help employees with any questions they may have.

Finding solutions in the foreground

The study underlines: Sales and marketing teams, especially in SMEs, are extremely resilient. The focus is on finding solutions in order to achieve growth goals despite massive internal and external disruptive factors. This path has already been successfully taken and the foundations have been laid. In the coming year, it will be important to reduce the workload on employees even further and to get the most out of the digitalization that has been initiated. In this way, you not only position yourself effectively in the crisis market environment, but you can also sustainably boost sales when the economic situation is expected to improve.