By Patrick Avenell
During tough economic times, equipment upgrades and marketing are the first expenses to be slashed while, encouragingly, only 16 per cent of businesses defer staff training due to uncertainty about the economy.
These findings were revealed today as part of the Sage Business Index 2012, which is a collection of data based on interviews with over 500 Australian business owners earlier this year.
When asked what expenditures were being contracted due to difficult trading conditions, 36 per cent replied 'upgrading plants/machinery', just ahead of marketing with 31 per cent. Also in the high 20s were developing new business areas (28%), paying off debt (28%), pay rises (27%) and new staff hire (25%).
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Overall, 23 per cent of businesses deferred all or most of their "significant business decisions", according to the report.
Interestingly, website and online marketing has been relatively stable, while employee training and new store openings have been affected even less by economic uncertainty.
Despite marketing spends being slashed, businesses are not fundamentally opposed to marketing and advertising, with 44 per cent of respondents saying that marketing was their priority area as soon as money becomes available. This was the most common response, with investing in sales, improving infrastructure and upgrading technology also on business owners' wish lists.