It’s been almost two years since the pandemic has swept the globe. But as COVID-19 becomes more predictable—something we’ll learn to cautiously live with, instead of an emergency outbreak that requires fluctuating responses—hope is on the horizon. For aspiring entrepreneurs, there’s opportunity in these unsettled times: right now might be the best time to start a business.
History proves this point, as past economic downturns produced some of North America’s biggest businesses. Computing giants Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft, manufacturing behemoth General Motors, entertainment icon Disney, and tech stars like Slack, Uber, and Venmo have all risen out of challenging times over the last 100 years.
Recent numbers also support this belief: The U.S. Census Bureau reported 4.4 million new business applications in 2020, a record at the time. Then, in 2021, that record was surpassed when 5.4 million new business applications were filed. Month over month, new applications surged in early 2021 and remained steady across most of the rest of the year, with a 2.6% increase in January 2022 alone.
What’s Driving the Growth in New Businesses?
Many economists say that hindsight often proves the old adage that downturns or challenging periods are the best times to start a business. The Small Business Administration issued nearly $6.2 billion in loans in 2021—10% higher than 2020. The SBA predicts that around 80% of those businesses will make it through their first year of operations, commonly considered the most difficult.
Other factors that make this a conducive environment for starting a company include a growing pool of resources and incentives from city, county, state, and industry organizations, all of which look to new business creation as an important factor in encouraging economic stability. Business ownership also offers tax advantages that can help mitigate the impact of inflation. As the world changes, customer needs evolve too, empowering new businesses to better meet those needs.
That’s particularly true in the cybersecurity and IT managed services industry, where rapid changes in the threats facing small businesses leave many companies scrambling for help. As ransomware and data breaches increase, the opportunities to provide reliable support increase. Growth in remote work and the need for device security is also at an all-time high. The trade group CompTIA reported last year that more than 500,000 job openings in the cybersecurity field were leaving many needs unmet.
“You don’t have to be a graduate of MIT to work in cybersecurity,” Tim Herbert, executive vice president for research at CompTIA, told CBS News in May 2021. “It just requires someone who has the proper training, proper certification, and is certainly committed to the work.”
The Franchise Model Offers Even More Opportunity
Business coaches often tell aspiring entrepreneurs to focus on five factors:
- Figure out what you want to do and why you want to do it
- Focus on a niche that’s not being addressed by your competition
- Create a strong online presence
- Find the right supporting team
- Don’t be afraid of the math
When it comes to technology and IT support, the franchise model offered by industry leaders like CMIT Solutions can help you address all five of these areas.
- Figure out what you want to do and why you want to do it. Many potential business owners want to be involved in their community and help other people that they know or trust. An independently owned and operated IT franchise provides the perfect opportunity for networking with other small business owners in the area.
- Focus on a niche. Cybersecurity is critical right now, and as the above numbers from CompTIA illustrate, there’s a serious void to be filled currently. Ransomware and data breaches aren’t going away—it’s all about evolving to fight them.
- Create a strong online presence. CMIT Solutions provides turnkey marketing support for new franchise owners, supporting everything from a home page on the web to authoritative content updates (just like the one you’re reading now!) to active social media accounts.
- Find the right supporting team. How does a North American network of more than 250 franchises and 800 technicians on your side sound? At CMIT Solutions, our strength lies in our quarter-century of experience working with business owners at every point on the entrepreneurial spectrum—some are new just like you, some are hitting the three-to five-year mark, and some have been in business for decades. Best of all, they’re all here to help as you start your journey.
- Don’t be afraid of the math. At CMIT Solutions, we empower franchise owners with a business model that focuses on multiple streams of recurring revenues. That means you can start to build an enduring asset on the first day you sign a contract with a client. These long-term relationships with other small to medium-sized businesses in your area mean a much smaller client base is required for success than the traditional transactional IT business.
CMIT Solutions offers a proven system of dynamic franchise interaction, responsive product development, and focused partner management so you can concentrate on growing your business. We offer low initial investment and start-up costs in a pandemic-resilient industry. Which makes CMIT a great option if you’re looking to start a business.
Franchise Research Institute has certified us as a world-class franchise for 15 years running. Entrepreneur Magazine regularly ranks us #1 in our industry. And our business owners enjoy frequent placements in major media outlets like Forbes, Inc., and HuffPost. Read more franchise reviews here.
With economic conditions right and hope on the horizon, this could be the perfect time to take the leap and start your entrepreneurial journey. Want to learn more about the managed service provider (MSP) model? Let’s talk today.
