Email on the move vital for small firms, says report
AROUND 85% of small firms are losing up to a day a week in downtime by not having access to emails on the move, according to research by Yorkshire-based Fone Solutions.
The results of the study by the husband and wife run firm also shows that more than 20% of small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) directors' was unproductive and that one fifth of their time – the equivalent of one day a week – was spent dealing with email.
It also showed that more than a quarter of SME directors work in excess of 60 hours a week but that dealing with issues such as email dramatically reduced time devoted to running the business.
According to Nick Underwood-Lea, co-founder and managing director of Fone Solutions, such ineffectual use of time and limited access to email when away from the office could lose potential clients to competitors.
“There was a lot of resistance to mobile email solutions at first as people didn't like thought of being reached 24/7 but more and more companies are beginning to see that unless they adapt to their customers' needs they are going to get left behind,” he said.
“Smart phones have already been popular during the first quarter of 2008 and we anticipate these products will continue to sell will throughout the year as more companies realise the business opportunities that can be maximised by simply being able to respond to an email when away from the office.”
Fone Solutions was set up by Mr Underwood-Lea, his wife Emily and business partner Martin Mackay in March 2006 to help smaller firms with their communication needs.
The business, which first operated out of their home, reported a £1m turnover in its first year of trading with year two projected to achieve £1.3m. It employs more than 20 staff and has around 350 customers.
