Study: 66% of Small Business Owners Using Mobile Apps

A new survey shows that the majority of small business owners (73 percent) are most stressed by the functions like managing revenue, expenses and collecting overdue payments. The survey was conducted by Zogby and commissioned by Xero, a provider of online accounting software.

Xero claims the best way to mitigate this stress is to stay on top of cash flow, which the company says they have made easier with the release of the Xero Touch app for Android device users.

Already available on iOS, the new Xero Touch app contains unique features that give users instant insight into where their business stands – a mere screen tap allows users to check account and credit card balances, as well as detailed descriptions of transactions. Benefits that small business users can gain from using the Xero Touch app include:

No more delayed invoices. Create invoices on the spot right from your phone, as inventory functionality makes it fast and easy to itemize invoices. With customer contact details available in the app, new invoices can be emailed right away and overdue invoices can be followed up on with a call and re-sent with just a few taps.
No more lost receipts. Gone are the days of crumpled expense receipts lurking in pants and purse pockets. Users can snap photos of receipts that are then instantly uploaded into their accounts. Expenses can be submitted right from their phone.

In the Zogby survey, 66 percent of small business owners said they access business apps from a mobile device, and 43 percent do so at least once a day. Of those same small business owners, 58 percent said their mobile devices made business more efficient, and 50 percent said that they would be interested in mobile accounting tools.

“As a small business owner, I am constantly in five places at once,” says Caitlin MacGregor, cofounder of cream.hr. “Xero Touch made overseeing and understanding finances convenient for the first time. While there still is stress with operating a business, I now feel I can concentrate more on business development, staff, and production. To the Android users: Watch out. This accounting app is addictive.”

Xero found that industrious small business owners don’t always sit behind the desk crunching numbers, but that the majority manage finances on-the-go: whether on the beach or the ski slopes, 46 percent checked their finances on vacation, while 15 percent checked them during the work commute, and 12 percent from the airplane. Many also multitasked during designated social or down time: 30 percent checked finances while watching TV and 18 percent while at a bar or restaurant. Other places financial monitoring took place included hotels, waiting for car repair, and even the front porch. Now these small business owners have extra ease and convenience with Xero Touch.

“Xero aims to be the accounting solution for today’s small business owner. iOS users have benefited from Xero Touch, and now it’s Android’s turn. We’re delighted to not only reach across the globe, but across cloud devices,” said Jamie Sutherland, Xero president of U.S. operations.

About the Survey

Xero commissioned the survey via IBOPE Zogby International through an online survey of 526 small businesses in the U.S from August 20 to August 21, 2012. A sampling of IBOPE Zogby International’s online panel, which is representative of the adult population of the U.S, was invited to participate. The margin of error is +/- 4.4 percentage points. Margins of error are higher in sub-groups. The MOE calculation is for sampling error only.