Monit recently conducted its quarterly pulse survey of over 300 small business owners from across the US. The survey focused on monitoring shifts in owners' sentiment about the economy and operating environment, changes in business priorities, and tracking emerging needs. The results of this survey can be particularly useful for business bankers, as they provide insights that can help them make informed decisions about how to support small businesses and better tailor their solution to meet the evolving needs of their clients.

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Key Highlights:

• SMB owners continue to be a relatively optimistic group with 66% reporting the economy/operating environment improved vs. prior quarter. Further, 52% of owners reported increased customer demand over the same time period
• 59% of owners reported an increased appetite to invest in growth, up 9% since Q2 ’22.  Where they’ll find funding for growth is less certain, with plans to use cash on hand, borrowing, and taking on new investors all down ~24% vs. prior quarter
• Business owners continue to focus on receivables management, with 77% reporting paying closer attention vs. prior quarter  
• The hyper-competitive job market is still not cooling, with 52% of owners reporting it is harder or much hard to hire and retain a skilled workforce
• SMBs continue to manage their cash well as Cash Coverage and median cash on hand remains stable, and above pre-pandemic levels

‍Actionable Considerations for Bankers:

• Business owners are continuing to pursue growth opportunities and will look for additional financial support
• Inflation and rate increases are top of mind, but not yet impacting borrowing appetite.  There is likely room for credit growth despite more expensive borrowing costs
• Focus on receivables management should lead to merchant services and treasury management opportunities
• Reinforce the personal banking relationship; digital is a tool to augment, rather than replace how clients and bankers engage

‍To get a copy of the full report, please contact our Chief Customer Officer @ ryan@monitapp.io‍The Q4 ‘22 survey was conducted between January 10^th through 12^th and queried owners' perspectives of changes vs. the prior quarter. The survey included US based businesses, including small businesses with between $100K-10 million in revenues and mid-sized businesses between $10-100 million in revenues.