{"id":170705,"date":"2026-06-10T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.constantcontact.com\/blog\/?p=170705"},"modified":"2026-06-10T09:23:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T13:23:44","slug":"small-business-marketing-statistics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.constantcontact.com\/blog\/small-business-marketing-statistics\/","title":{"rendered":"Small Businesses Embrace the Role of ‘Creator’ to Get Seen in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There’s some seriously good news for small businesses right now: Consumer love for independent brands is soaring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as any business owner will tell you, a surge in interest brings a whole new set of challenges. With social media now serving as the primary way for consumers to discover brands, small business owners find themselves playing the role of content creators on top of every other hat they’ve got to wear. At the same time, they’re navigating an economy where inflation-weary buyers are more carefully evaluating every dollar they spend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For our latest Small Business Now<\/strong> report, we surveyed more than 5,000 small business owners and consumers across the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to understand the current landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What did we discover? To stay visible while managing the daily hustle of running a business, SMBs (small and medium-sized businesses) are fundamentally rewriting their job descriptions to embrace the role of “creator” — and leaning on AI to get it all done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read on for the most fascinating takeaways from our latest survey and tips on how to apply these insights to your<\/em> small business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Folks want to shop small, but budgets are tight<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Where people want to spend their money has completely shifted over the last few years. Consumers are actively turning away from giant retailers to spend money at smaller independent brands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n