Small Business Labs

MAY 25, 2011

Each year MIT's Technology Review chooses 10 emerging technologies they think will have the greatest impact on the world.    This year's top 10 are: Social Indexing. Smart Transformers. Gestural Interfaces. Cancer Genomics. Solid State Batteries. Homomorphic Encryption. Cloud Streaming. Crash Proof Code. Separating Chromosomes.

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Small Business Labs

MAY 27, 2020

million in revenue in 2018 rose to 41,666 in 2018, according to just-released Census  data , up from 39,494 in 2017 and up from 26,744 in 2011—a nearly 48% increase.  .  Key quote: The number of nonemployer firms—those with no employees except the owners— that hit $1-$2.49 that aren't active solopreneur businesses. 

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 7, 2011

Accuweather released their winter weather forecast , which they say is going to be "another brutal one." " Look out Chicago , they're forecasting another bad winter for your part of the country.    Key quote: "In terms of both snow and cold, this winter is expected to be the worst in Chicago."

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Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 30, 2020

more than doubled since 2011. As the chart below (click to enlarge) from the MBO Partners State of Independence study series shows, the share of independent workers (freelancers, independent contractors and other microbusinesses) providing goods and services to customers outside the U.S.

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

million in 2011 to $4.6 Crunchbase's How Seed Funding Has Exploded In The Past 10 Years reports that: Fewer than 3,200 companies received seed funding in the period between 2006 and 2010. A decade later, that had ballooned to more than 23,000 startups. Crunchbase data also shows that the average seed investment has grown from $1.7

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 27, 2018

The pictures below (click to enlarge) were taken in 2011 at Citizen Space, one of our favorite early coworking spaces. Located   The spaces were also definitely low end.  Located in an old building in a low rent SF neighborhood, you entered Citizen Space through a loading dock.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 21, 2017

The trend on this has been consistently upward since the study was first started in 2011.  This data shows that over the study time frame (2011-2017), the number of people who moved between traditional employment and independent work consistently has increased. 

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Small Business Labs

MARCH 12, 2019

million in 2011 to 5.9 .  Like prior years, the 2019 study focuses on the growing group of highly-skilled independent professionals (freelancers, independent consultants, etc.) who provide services to businesses on a regular basis. And the number of independent professionals has grown quite rapidly. million in 2014, and to 7.4

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 9, 2018

high earning independent workers (those making $100k or more) has increased by 70% since 2011. .  As the chart below from the MBO Partners State of Independence study research brief Highly Skilled, High Earning Workers shows, the number of U.S.

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 1, 2018

The good news is the poverty rate has been drifting down since 2011. Due to these problems, the supplemental poverty measure was developed in 2010. The chart below shows how the both the official and supplemental poverty rates from 2009 to 2017. The bad news is kids 18 and under have the highest poverty rate - 15.6%.

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 29, 2014

This is up 1.1%, or 245,000 businesses, from 2011. Census recently reported that the number of U.S. nonemployer businesses reached 22.7 million in 2012.   These businesses generated $1 trillion in total revenue, up 4.2% This translates into an average of $45,300 per business.

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 15, 2019

million annually since 2011. As the study chart below shows (click to enlarge), the number of new full-time independent workers/freelancers entrants has stayed steady at around 1.5 But the number of people exiting has varied widely. In 2012, only about 800,000 exited, but in 2016 2.4 million did.

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 29, 2013

We co-authored this report with Intuit and it's an update of The Future of the Accounting Profession study we did with them in 2011.  This shift is happening even faster than we forecast in 2011 (and we forecast a very fast transition to these technologies in 2011).

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 20, 2012

now owning smartphones.This is a significant increase compared to July 2011 when only 41 percent of mobile subscribers owned smartphones."   Young adults are leading the way in Smartphone ownership with 74 percent of 25-34 year olds now owning smartphones, up from 59 percent in July 2011.

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 28, 2013

 Here's the data from the article: from 2006 to 2011 the number of dogs declined from 72 million to 70 million. about 36 million households owned at least 1 cat in 2011, down 6% from 2006. According to article the number of pets in the U.S. has declined over the last 5 years or so.   This would not surprise me.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

  Key findings include: The independent workforce grew from 16 million in 2011 to 16.9 Compared with 2011, satisfaction was up, concerns about the challenges of being independent (lack of consistent income, job security, lack of benefits, etc.) million in 2012. million independents earn more than $100,000 per year.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013

The session was part of a broader research project we're conducting with Intuit updating the Future of the Accounting Profession study that was released in early 2011. Our 2011 forecast report covered outsourcing, but positioned it mostly as a threat to the accounting industry. We found this both interesting and important.

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Small Business Labs

JULY 3, 2018

It's written by journalist Sarah Kessler, who's been covering the gig economy since 2011.  We're behind on our reading, but did manage to get to Gigged - The End of the Job and The Future of Work. The theme that unites them is they all get work via an online marketplace or platform.

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 17, 2017

The growth of niche spaces is one reason we felt coworking had hit a growth inflection point in 2011 and why we reported it had entered the mainstream in 2016. The reason is growing numbers of niche spaces is a key indicator that coworking is growing and spreading across the economy.

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 22, 2010

Blog powered by TypePad Member since 01/2005 « Software "Super Vendors" and Barbell Industrial Structures | Main | Why Global Poverty is Declining » October 22, 2010 Gartners Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2011 Is it just me, or is it too early for 2011 top trends lists? 

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Small Business Labs

AUGUST 9, 2012

billion in 2011, up 2% over 2010. billion in 2011. .  According to an article in Media Post,  U.S. retail sales of non-food pet supplies totaled $11.1 Please note these sales numbers do not include pet food.  U.S. pet food sales increased 4.5%   Many of the products entering the U.S

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Small Business Labs

JULY 6, 2011

  Stock market analysts are forecasting S&P 500 companies, on average, will see earnings growth of 17% in 2011 and 14% in 2012.    We think this trend will continue for the rest of 2011.  we've faced in the 1st half of 2011 are easing.  economic growth in 2nd half of 2011. 

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 1, 2016

This is up from nearly 35 percent in 2015 and just 29 percent in 2011. .  According to the report, the use of contingent workers by corporations continues to grow and accounts for nearly 38 percent of all workers in 2016. This is a very fast growth rate by labor market standards. 

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 26, 2017

  The chart below is an update of a chart we did for our 2011 article  The Amazing Growth of the Pet Industry. .)  And based on the continuing growth in pet spending, it seems the investors behind these deals aren't barking up the wrong tree.  It's not just VCs and startups focusing on the pet industry.

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Small Business Labs

MAY 11, 2015

The key quote from the report is: 64% of American adults now own a smartphone of some kind, up from 35% in the spring of 2011. ." And while the growth of smartphones and smartphone usage is not new news, it's nice having detailed data illustrating it.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 5, 2016

million in 2011 to 6.4 .  As the chart below from the HBR's Your Company Needs Independent Workers shows, the number of U.S. independent workers serving businesses has grown from 4.5 million in 2015.    This is about 3 times as fast as overall employment growth during this period. that focus on consumers.

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 17, 2012

employees in 2011. employees in 2011. The key data from the report is on the size of startups: The average size of establishment births (new startups, excluding seasonal businesses)in the 1990s was around 7.6 employees, whereas the average size of births fell from 6.8 employees in 2001 to 4.7 to 4.9%.

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Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 21, 2011

We at Smallbizlabs hope 2011 was a good year for you, your family and your small business.    We're looking forward to 2012 and are optimistic that the small business economy will continue to improve. Happy Holidays to all.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 31, 2012

500 companies blogging declined in 2011.  But in 2011 only 37% did. U Mass Dartmouth marketing professor Nora Barnes has caused quite a stir in social media circles with her latest  study on the usage of social media by Inc. 500 companies.  The research shows the number of Inc.  In 2010 half of the Inc.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 22, 2014

in 2011, 16.3% .  Key quote: "Retailers got only about half the holiday traffic in 2013 as they did just three years earlier, according to ShopperTrak, which uses a network of 60,000 shopper-counting devices to track visits at malls and large retailers across the country. The data firm tracked declines of 28.2% in 2012 and 14.6%

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Small Business Labs

AUGUST 4, 2011

  This level of growth is expected to continue in 2011.  .  As the chart below from the USDA shows, the number of registered farmers markets increased 16% in 2010 to 6,132.      

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Small Business Labs

MAY 4, 2011

economy will grow moderately in 2011.    Wall Street continues to forecast double digit earnings growth at S&P 500 companies in 2011, which is a key reason why stock prices are at their highest level since before the Great Recession.   It appears they have good reasons. 

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 27, 2017

Between 2011 and 2016 the total number of U.S. .  The chart below show the growth of U.S. independent workers who report annual earnings of $100,000 or more. While this doesn't exactly map to the Resolution Trust's definition of "privileged", it is similar.

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 7, 2012

The craft market place Etsy , for example, had over $500 million in sales in 2011 - $70 million in December alone.  Make Magazine's Best of Maker Business 2011 provides an excellent summary of the business activities of these inventors and tinkerers. The professional Maker market also continues to grow.  

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 20, 2012

.   NVCA  also reported that the level of 2012 venture funding will likely substantially fall relative to 2011. According to the NVCA, the number of these rounds has fallen by almost one-third in 2012 versus 2011.   The reason is quite simple. VC returns have been lousy for the last decade.

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 22, 2013

  As you can see from the chart below, 14% responded probably/definitely in 2011 and 13% responded probably/definitely in 2012. " Earlier in the survey the term independent worker is defined to include freelancing, temping, self-employment, etc. 

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 28, 2017

This is up from only about 5% in 2011.  According to data from the 2016 MBO Partners State of Independence study series , about 1 in 5 independent workers use on-demand platforms to help them find customers.   The use of on-demand economy platforms to help start and build businesses is not well known.

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