# Anticipating the Future of Small Business in 2024: Insight from Industry Leaders
In today’s ever-evolving entrepreneurial world, staying ahead of the latest trends is crucial for small business success. The year 2024 promises to bring about significant innovations and changes across various key areas that impact small businesses. To better prepare you for what lies ahead, we reached out to several small business experts to gather their insights on the anticipated trends for 2024.
## Trends in 2024:
### Building Community
– **Businesses should make commitment to communities a strategic imperative in 2024**
– Businesses of all sizes will make fostering the growth of their local communities a top priority in 2024. It’s of strategic importance and can provide a competitive advantage. As businesses, we are all responsible for building stronger economies and more resilient communities.
– *—Ashley Hubka, Senior Vice President/General Manager, [Walmart Business](https://business.walmart.com/)*
### Customer Experience
– **Maintaining a strong brand identity and foothold within the market**
– The “customer is always right” mantra is one many business owners know, abide by, and incorporate into their company cultures. This is why in 2024 I predict businesses of all sizes will invest more in the customer experience to keep their clients happy and returning.
– *—Nellie Akalp, CEO, [CorpNet](https://www.corpnet.com/)*
– **Personalization will be crucial for continuing to build client relationships**
– Managing the client flow process with a personalized touch from start to finish is crucial for success, continued growth, customer satisfaction, and retention.
– *—Oz Alon, CEO, [HoneyBook](https://www.honeybook.com/)*
– **The future of marketing is going to be incredibly personal**
– In 2024, I expect small businesses to steer even further into this trend and truly put a personal touch on their marketing communications. They will learn new technologies and leverage them to understand their customers’ experiences, preferences, and consumption habits to make them feel like the stars of the show.
– *—Laura Goldberg, CMO, [Constant Contact](https://www.constantcontact.com/)*
### Finances
– **Small businesses continue grappling with significant challenges impacting their growth and sustainability**
– According to insights recently gathered by Hello Alice, the struggle to secure capital or find accessible loans remains a pressing issue, with a substantial 31.4% of small business owners reporting this challenge.
– *—Elizabeth Gore, President/Co-founder, [Hello Alice](https://helloalice.com/)*
– **How to weather a recession**
– Small businesses should determine whether they will need capital in 2024 and, if so, work to secure it now.
– Small businesses that streamline operations and leverage technology to do more work with less labor will be the best prepared to weather a recession.
– *—Ben Johnston, COO, [Kapitus](https://kapitus.com/)*
– **Small business owners get creative and find ways to problem-solve and grow their companies**
– Small business owners are now prioritizing their digital financial toolkits to improve their businesses.
– *—Brett Sussman, Vice President, [Business Blueprint & Banking at American Express](https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/blueprint/)*
### Going Global
– **Creators and SMBs are going global in 2024**
– From the creator and sharing economies to e-commerce and traditional brick-and-mortar businesses, 2024 is the year SMBs go global.
– *—Matt Baker, Head of Small Business, [Visa Commercial Solutions](https://visa-commercial-solutions.visa.com/visa-commercial-solutions/)*
### Marketing
– **Marketers must continue to innovate and stay ahead of the curve**
– AI is here to stay.
– Zero and first-party data will be critical.
– New advertising and content formats will be an advantage.
– *—Chris Cho, President, [LocaliQ, Digital Marketing Solutions, Gannett](https://localiq.com/)*
– **AI is not just a trend but a fundamental shift in how small and medium-sized businesses approach marketing**
– AI’s integration into marketing strategies marks a new era characterized by data-driven insights, creative innovation, and personalized customer experiences.
– *—Michelle Taite, Global Chief Marketing Officer, [Intuit Mailchimp](https://mailchimp.com/)*
### Solopreneurs
– **Independent businesses will continue to adopt and embrace innovative tech to augment their businesses**
– AI will not completely replace workers. Instead, in 2024, technologies like AI and automation will augment independent businesses and help them become more productive, giving back time to focus on doing what they love.
– *—Oz Alon, CEO, [HoneyBook](https://www.honeybook.com/)*
– **More technology will be built specifically for solo business owners to do more with less**
– We expect to see an increase in the number of solopreneurs and side hustles this year.
– *—Matt Feierstein, President, [EverCommerce](http://www.evercommerce.com/)*
### Technology
– **SaaS companies will shift their focus to more inclusive technology with intuitive points of entry to cater to older business owners**
– Generation X and baby boomers made up 86.8% of all small business owners in 2023. Older generations didn’t grow up with the technology that younger business owners are accustomed to—and today’s SaaS platforms will need to include business owners who are slower tech adopters to provide more opportunities and access to new solutions.
– *—Matt Feierstein, President, [EverCommerce](http://www.evercommerce.com/)*
– **SMBs embrace AI and scale back on SaaS providers**
– Tentativeness in the market will begin to ease.
– SMBs are leveling up by scaling back on SaaS providers.
– *—Aparna Khurjekar, Head of Small Business, [Verizon Business](https://www.verizon.com/business/solutions/small-business/)*
In conclusion, 2024 promises to be a year of significant change and innovation for small businesses. By staying informed about the anticipated trends and taking proactive measures to adapt, small business owners can position themselves for success in the ever-evolving entrepreneurial landscape.
For in-depth insights into specific trends for 2024, including AI predictions, workplace predictions, and retail predictions, check out our related articles:
– [2024 AI Predictions](https://www.allbusiness.com/ai-predictions-2024)
– [Workplace Predictions for 2024](https://www.allbusiness.com/workplace-predictions-2024)
– [2024 Retail Predictions](https://www.allbusiness.com/2024-retail-predictions)
