Small businesses beginning to use tablets

Small businesses have started to utilize as much technology as possible in order to increase their brand awareness and make things more user-friendly. One of the most commonly used products is the tablet, which has recently become more popular among consumers and companies.

According to the findings of the Small Business Authority's sentiment survey, a monthly view of the concerns of independent business owners, 67 percent of business owners out of 2,100 respondents said they don't currently run a business application on their smartphones or tablets.

"We believe the long-term trend toward cloud computing and small business using tablets and smartphones has started," said Barry Sloane, chairman, president and CEO of the Small Business Authority. "We believe mobile computing and mobile applications are here to stay and will revolutionize the way business is done today. We believe the use of paper printing and connectivity with desktops and printers will go to the wayside, much like Polaroid cameras."

Sloane added that they are somewhat surprised that the non-mobile application participants don't recognize that they will be transitioning to tablet use and only 14 percent of the non-users who were interviewed intended to switch soon.

"We will sample this survey every six to 12 months to check on the trend," Sloane said. "We strongly believe that cloud computing and mobile applications for business will be a major trend and wave that will totally increase business efficiency. This trend will also protect our environment by less use of paper and a need to cut down forests and trees."

Despite the convenience it gives consumers, 98 percent of small and medium-sized business will not offer mobile-optimized websites to capitalize on the trend, which could help with small business marketing, according to a recent report from Upstart Business Journal.