- Allison Ko
- Jul 1
- 6 min read
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Forget what you thought you knew about marketing your small business—2025 is a whole new ballgame. Money’s tight, Gen Z’s coming of age and AI keeps shaking things up. The old playbook won’t cut it anymore.
That’s why, together with VistaPrint, we surveyed 1,000 small business owners and 1,000 consumers across the U.S. We asked each respondent a series of questions to understand how they’re keeping up with the changing times and the marketing strategies that are working for them.
Check out some of the most useful insights and statistics below. Or, check out the full small business marketing report.
Want to learn more about how to make a website for your small business? Use a website builder like Wix to get started.
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TL;DR
If you’re in a rush, here’s a peek at some of the top findings this year:
Niche pays off. Businesses that consider themselves one-of-a-kind say that it’s easy to reach customers. Nowadays, it’s more about standing out above other small businesses, which entails a strong branding strategy.
Websites are new-school. A majority of consumers (81%) across all ages say that it’s important for businesses to have a website. If they can’t find a business’s site, then many will look elsewhere.
Gen Z is the only gen that prefers online shopping. The rest still have their hearts set on in-person shopping, though across generations, digital marketing still plays a big role in the decision-making process.
AI is a vehicle for personalization. The majority of small business owners use AI for marketing personalization, while surprisingly few use AI for support with admin tasks.
Small business statistics
01. A majority (53%) of small business owners started a business wanting flexibility and control of their schedule.
Not every small business owner (SBO) started their business looking to be the next Jeff Bezos. While, yes, that would be nice—many SBOs took the leap and left their 9-to-5s in favor of more autonomy. Nearly half (48%) also report they wanted the chance to strike out on their own, and 46% wanted to achieve financial independence. When asked how they define success, the top response was growing their business enough to sustain their lifestyle.
02. More than half (52%) of SBOs say that their biggest competitors are other small businesses.
It’s not the Starbucks on the corner giving SBOs a run for their money, but other specialty stores. There are plenty of customers willing and eager to shop “small,” but new businesses are cropping up all the time, making them bigger competitors than the chain stores in town.
03. The top challenge for small businesses is market saturation.
Even above having limited budgets, most SBOs report having trouble standing out. Consumers are feeling the same thing: 62% say they struggle to choose between products and services from similar small businesses.
04. Small businesses that are less than a year old are more likely to target international buyers than businesses that are over 20 years old.
Younger businesses are looking beyond borders from the get-go. (We’re guessing TikTok, Amazon and the endless number of online sales channels have a lot to do with this.) That being said, only 7% of respondents say that a majority of their customers are international, whereas 62% say most of their customers come from the local area and 31% say nationwide.
Read also: Local marketing strategies
Shopping behavior statistics
05. Compared to last year, 36% of consumers say they’re shopping at small businesses more often.
Meanwhile, 59% say that they shop at small businesses the same amount as last year, and 5% shop at small businesses less than they used to. When asked why they choose to shop “small,” the top three reasons included wanting to support the local economy, seeking more unique products and receiving more personalized customer service.
06. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of consumers still prefer shopping in person, but that’s mostly driven by older generations.
Even though one in three consumers prefer to do their shopping online, whether via websites or social media, a majority still crave face-to-face experiences. But when broken down by generation, there’s a big disparity. While 55% of Gen Z consumers prefer shopping online, the older generations favor in person, with a whopping 83% of Baby Boomers choosing to shop IRL.
07. Product quality is the number one reason that people become repeat customers.
Seventy-three percent of consumers say that if a product meets their quality expectations, then they’re likely to shop with a business again. (“Quality product” is also the top vehicle for building trust, according to surveyed consumers.) By comparison, 57% say location and convenience matter, and 47% say they’re drawn by great customer support.
Traditional marketing statistics
08. In the offline world, 45% of consumers still discover new business through direct mail.
Direct mail even beat out TV and radio ads, which 36% of consumers say help with discovery. However, it’s the older generations (Gen X and Baby Boomers) that respond best to direct mail. Unsurprisingly, Gen Z are bigger fans of promotional products (think branded pens and T-shirts), while Millennials respond best to TV and radio ads.
09. Promotional products are a popular tactic across industries, but consumers value different items than what businesses are offering.
More than half (62%) of consumers still love a free T-shirt, yet less than half (47%) of businesses are actually stocking them. Interestingly enough, the one item that consumers and businesses seem to love equally are branded pens.
Ready to try out some new marketing strategies? Wix has a suite of tools at your disposal like Wix SEO, free web hosting, logo maker or business card maker.
Digital marketing statistics
10. More than three-quarters of SBOs say that their website is “essential” or “important” for growth.
And of these respondents, 62% say their website is crucial for attracting new customers and 48% say it boosts credibility. Only 6% of SBOs say a website isn’t important. Most respondents who don’t have a website say it’s because they rely on social media marketing instead.
Try a social media design tool or a QR code generator to reach your audience in the social spaces they inhabit.
11. A whopping 81% of consumers say that “it’s important” for a business to have a branded website.
Meanwhile, 15% say it’s a dealbreaker if a business lacks a website. When they can’t find a business’s website, 42% will look elsewhere and 14% will doubt that it’s a real business. In other words, even if a business is present on other platforms like social media, a website shows they’re legit (amongst other things).
12. Fifty-two percent of SBOs focus on social media engagement to build loyalty, but only 38% of consumers say social media actually brings them back to a brand.
By contrast, two in three consumers value personalized offers and discounts. Sixty percent of consumers additionally value loyalty programs (but only 37% of businesses focus on it), and 37% come back to a business seeking branded merchandise.
Small business marketing trends statistics
13. A majority (63%) of consumers want businesses to support community issues and events more heavily.
Consumers have increasing expectations for businesses as it relates to social responsibility and giving back to their communities. More than half (55%) also want more collaborations between small businesses, or for small businesses to grow their online connections.
14. A third of SBOs plan to invest more into both traditional and digital marketing in the next 12 months.
Many businesses haven’t ditched offline marketing, even in today’s digital age. Rather, they want to strike a balance between offline and online strategies. At the same time, 34% plan to expand their efforts in digital marketing.
15. Fifty-five percent of SBOs are already using AI tools.
Younger companies are the most eager to tap into AI, whereas small businesses over 20 years old are more hesitant. Among the 45% of SBOs who don’t use AI, 65% are interested in it and 21% aren’t sure.
16. Marketing personalization is the number one way SBOs are using AI.
This is followed by “saving time on marketing tasks” and “automating content.” Most surveyed SBOs still prefer to handle admin tasks themselves and lean on AI most heavily for creative purposes, such as content generation.
“AI is teaching us that humans don’t have to do everything…And soon we’ll see the experts—the people that are really good at their jobs, who are very creative or who have the most unique takes—will be able to scale themselves.” - Shachaf Rodberg, Wix marketing trend analyst
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