7 out of 10 Americans declare having a side hustle to earn extra income
Incfile, a leader in online business formation and startup services, released Part 1 of its 2023 Small Business Trends Survey. With National Small Business Week underway on April 30, the annual survey takes a deep dive into what makes up our nation’s entrepreneurs and what issues impact them the most.
“What we hear from our annual survey reflects what we hear from the Incfile community day after day…entrepreneurship isn’t easy, but the rewards are worth it”
Owning a business is demanding, but entrepreneurs are up for the task. These are the challenges American entrepreneurs identified in 2023:
SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS CRAVE COMMUNITY
When finding new business resources, many of those surveyed felt they had nowhere to go. The most common sites visited included IRS.gov (22%) and SBA.gov (21%), but small business owners crave community. Entrepreneurs who are part of a small business community were nearly 60% more likely to do better this year than last.
Entrepreneurs “go to” resources for small business help:
● 31% – didn’t have one
● 22% – IRS.gov
● 21% – SBA.gov
● 14% – Visa.com
● 12% – Other
Lack of community helps explain why 58% say that when starting out, they didn’t have access to the knowledge, tools and resources they needed to achieve success.
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IS STARTING A SMALL BUSINESS WORTH IT?
The Incfile community is more than 1 million strong, and this part of our survey confirms what we hear day after day – entrepreneurship is overwhelmingly rewarding.
● 72% say what they do is challenging but very worthwhile
● 25% say that in their experience, entrepreneurship is both fun and rewarding
● Men were more likely than women to say that entrepreneurship was easy
● Entrepreneurs age 18-34 were three times more likely to respond that business ownership was difficult and not worth it
WHY CHOOSE TO BE AN ENTREPRENEUR?
While we often talk about the freedom entrepreneurship brings, that’s not the main reason, according to our survey. So, why become an entrepreneur?
● 41% say passion is their main reason
● 34% said they had no choice due to financial constraints
● 15% entered entrepreneurship so they could be their own boss
● 10% were eager to be on an entrepreneurial path
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WHAT DO SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS WANT LESS OF?
OR MORE OF?
● 47% want to reduce stress and mental health concerns
● 37% want less bureaucracy and paperwork
● 16% want to eliminate the need to find and hire the right people
WHAT DO SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS WANT MORE OF?
● 47% want more funding and grant access
● 33% want more time off and vacation
● 20% want straight answers and community support
“What we hear from our annual survey reflects what we hear from the Incfile community day after day…entrepreneurship isn’t easy, but the rewards are worth it,” said Dustin Ray, Chief Growth Officer & Co-CEO, Incfile. “We are very proud to work with so many entrepreneurs that are relentless. There is no question that passion drives entrepreneurship, and the Incfile community is better for it.”