This year has been “unprecedented” in many ways. In fact, the word of the year should be “unprecedented.” It perfectly summarizes the year 2020. It was a year of challenges, surprises, and twists of fate. Google’s small business search trends of 2020 are equally as surprising in some areas, and make perfect sense in others. Below is an infographic that summarizes this in an easy to digest way.
The Most Searched Terms for Small Businesses
Not surprisingly, starting a clothing business was the chart topper of 2020. As we saw the meteoric rise of Shopify, we also saw the rise of mom and pop boutiques go digital. They discovered the power of the internet and realized all the potential they were missing out on. The internet is a vast space and serves more than your local neighborhood visitor population who would normally walk into a store.
The surprising trend here is “Farm” and “Record Labels”. We aren’t sure what this would signify as a society but interestingly enough, 2020 saw some interesting breakdowns in our food supply chain as well as a disruption in music/video production. We’re wondering if there are any music studio disruptors out there working on the next big idea!
The Most Profitable Small Business
Accounting and Bookkeeping services continue to top the charts thanks to a few major advances in AI and automation tools. Linking up a spreadsheet to Zapier and QuickBooks Online gives a Bookkeeper the power to spend less time on one account. They are not able to service hundreds of clients as an individual sole proprietor. Contrast that with medical offices who can’t automate much of their work, but can charge a premium for their specialized services.
The Future of Small Business: 2021 and Beyond
Who knows what the latest trend will show. Our bet is on the freelancer economy as remote work becomes more and more mainstream. Employers will soon realize the benefits of hiring a remote contractor workforce to push processes through their company. Remote workers will likely enjoy moonlighting as a contractor/freelancer to make extra income since they are already at a computer all day anyway. With an uncertain future of the pandemic, traditional second jobs like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash are getting risky while sitting home in front of a computer and doing data entry, process automation, or graphic design is a safer alternative.