THE CHALLENGE

Intuit, the global financial technology platform that makes QuickBooks, is committed to powering prosperity for Canadian consumers and small businesses. Attuned to the potential influence current economic and financial challenges have on the next generation of future entrepreneurs, Edelman Canada DXI had previously developed the Intuit QuickBooks 2021 Future of Entrepreneurship report, which painted a broad picture of Canada’s state of entrepreneurship. This study introduced profound insight and went on to serve as the basis for a new research opportunity.

To complement the groundwork accomplished in the first study, any additional research contribution needed to achieve continuity, provide a fresh perspective and avoid redundancy. We identified key foundational metrics to address this problem, including a comprehensive understanding of current and prospective business owners across the country and tracked changes over time. The updated 2022 New Generation of Entrepreneurship in Canada report sought to explore the experiences of Early Start small business owners, including their sales approaches, current use of technology and future business plans.

THE STRATEGY

Intuit QuickBooks can better serve small businesses when informed of the intricacies of their audiences’ small business management and growth strategies.

The strategic objectives of the study were to:

• Understand the state of entrepreneurship in Canada.
• Gain new insight and perspective into Early Starts.
• Define the evolution of marketing for small business owners and a look ahead at their future.

THE EXECUTION

The study included two quantitative surveys, one tracking year-over-year entrepreneurship shifts and another with comprehensive questions surrounding small business ownership. The study occurred online collectively between April 26 and May 4, 2022.

Together, we learned that 1 in 4 Canadian small business owners started their business during the pandemic, which translates to over 2 million Canadians. The study also debunked a commonly upheld assumption that interest in entrepreneurship has declined due to economic uncertainty, with 86% of Canadian small business owners feeling optimistic about their business’s future success.

Our comprehensive research report’s findings were leveraged to develop a custom public-facing report which included key storytelling data points, personalized communications content from Intuit’s stakeholders, and a collection of resources for Canadian small business owners.

The New Generation of Entrepreneurship in Canada 2022 report can be found here.

THE OUTCOME

Through proactive pitching efforts, the report received coverage across notable Canadian general news and business outlets such as Wealth Professional, CTV News, Toronto Sun and Canadian Press. Results surpassed year one performance and sparked conversation in outlets across the country.