By Rieva Lesonsky
Summer is here?but as any small business owner knows, summer vacation isn?t always an option when you run a busy business. In fact, the latest Manta SMB Wellness Index conducted by online small business community Manta found almost half of small business owners don?t have time to take a vacation this summer. Nearly 60 percent say they?re working harder this year than last.? And 70 percent aren?t planning to hire any new employees this summer, meaning it?s harder than ever for small business owners to get away.
Those fortunate small business owners who can take time off this summer are able to do so partly because of mobile technology that lets them stay in touch with the office. Seventy percent of small business owners Manta surveyed say they plan to check email/work documents from their mobile device during their vacation. But that?s not a bad thing: 60 percent say their mobile devices and business applications help them enjoy their vacation more.
Mobile apps are part of small business owners? lives even when they?re not on vacation. Twenty-five percent of small business owners say they access business-related apps on their mobile device two to three times a day. Sixty-eight percent say they use their mobile device at work even while they?re in front of their computer. Of those, more than half are checking personal emails or texts on their phone; 17 percent say their email comes in faster on their device than on their computer; and over 10 percent confess they?re just ?addicted? to checking their phone.
Even so, Manta found most small business owners would rather communicate with customers or partners in more traditional ways. More than 50 percent of small business owners say they usually communicate with customers, vendors and partners by phone or in person.
?While mobile technology is enabling small business owners to stay connected no matter where they are, SMBs set themselves apart by adding that personal touch to their relationships with customers and partners,? says Manta CEO Pamela Springer.
Image by Flickr user virtualphotographystudio (Creative Commons)
The views expressed here are the author's alone and not those of Network Solutions or its partners.
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