According to the inaugural Small Business Saturday Insights Survey, released today by the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) and American Express, 46 percent of independent merchants plan to incorporate Small Business Saturday as part of their holiday strategy, and the majority (67 percent) of them say they will offer discounts on November 24th.



Of those small business owners planning to promote Small Business Saturday, 80 percent expect a year-over-year boost in sales on that day, and discounts and special offers for consumers are one of the key incentives to drive consumers to ‘shop small’.

Small Business Saturday falls between Black Friday and Cyber Monday and serves as the traditional kick off to the holiday shopping season for independent retailers and restaurateurs. The day was created in response to small business owners' most pressing need: more customers.


“Research has shown that American consumers have a deep trust in, and admiration for, the small business community. Small Business Saturday gives them a chance to show their appreciation – and help America’s essential job creators in a very real way – by patronizing small shops, restaurants and service providers,” said NFIB CEO Dan Danner. “And anything that helps with sales is certainly appreciated by small business owners, many of whom have struggled to stay afloat in a rough and uncertain economy.”


While many small business owners will be focusing on driving value to customers through discounts, there are a number of ways that they are planning to take advantage of the opportunity to drive consumers to “shop small.” According to the Small Business Saturday Insights Survey:



  • 46 percent will create coupons for future offers or discounts; 
  • 25 percent will offer free gift wrapping; 
  • 23 percent will giveaway prizes or hosts contests; and, 
  • 20 percent will give away free items with purchase.

The Small Business Saturday Insights Survey was created to provide a window into the 2012 holiday planning for small business owners. Other survey findings include:


 


  • 81 percent say Small Business Saturday would be more effective if their communities came together and hosted events; 
  • 34 percent say Small Business Saturday is the most important shopping day during holiday season, compared to 24 percent who cited Black Friday and 14 percent who cited Cyber Monday (37 percent said they were all equally important);
  • 28 percent intend to increase the number of employees who will work on Small Business Saturday; and, 
  • 87 percent will be active in social media channels to promote Small Business Saturday: ◦ 96 percent of those will be using Facebook (33 percent will use Twitter, 15 percent will use Google+ and 15 percent will use Pinterest).

“In just three years, Small Business Saturday went from an idea to help Small Business find more customers, to a permanent fixture on the holiday shopping calendar,” said Susan Sobbott, president, American Express OPEN. “According to the research, we are seeing the small business community take ownership of the day and make it their own.”



For the third year in a row, American Express is offering a merchant toolkit on www.ShopSmall.com that includes: