Majority of Mid-Sized Businesses Outgrow Technology or Overpay for Unused Features

December 09, 2021 at 12:09 PM EST

Intuit QuickBooks Survey Finds Mid-Sized Businesses are Increasingly Adopting Technology, Yet Finding the “Right-Sized” Tools Remains an Obstacle

Ninety-three percent of businesses with 10 to 100 employees say they have outgrown at least some of their digital tools or are paying for features of an Enterprise Resource Planning system that they don’t use¹. In fact, 79% of mid-sized businesses report they are underserved by digital tools designed for small businesses, yet large enterprise digital tools are overkill. The findings come from a new survey of mid-sized businesses released today from Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU), the global technology platform that makes QuickBooks , TurboTax, Mint, Credit Karma, and Mailchimp.

QuickBooks surveyed² 1,000 business owners with 10 to 100 employees in an attempt to understand how mid-sized businesses are leveraging technology to grow. For 49%, purchasing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system was a path to growth. Yet, nearly half of those businesses (47%) say they don’t use all of the ERP capabilities and feel they overpaid for solutions. Eighty-four percent of businesses report their current ERP system is too large to satisfy their specific business needs and 32% of the system’s capabilities go unused. A lack of customization is one of the top disadvantages to their current system as noted by nearly half of businesses surveyed (47%).

Almost half (48%) of mid-sized businesses with 10 to 100 employees say that they aren’t currently using digital tools designed for a business of their size. “We know how well QuickBooks meets the needs of small businesses, but we also know that businesses' needs grow as they become more complex,” said Kelly Vincent, QuickBooks Vice President of Mid-Market Small Business at Intuit. “So while they may not want to do a full migration to an ERP system, they are looking for an efficient and customizable solution to meet their needs.”

“This is where QuickBooks Online Advanced has a unique opportunity to help growing businesses that are either underserved by their old tools - or overserved by enterprise-level solutions. Advanced leverages the goodness of QuickBooks Online and integrates additional capabilities, delivering all the functionality mid-sized businesses need at a fraction of the price of a traditional ERP,” said Vincent.

While technology adoption is on the rise, understanding what tools are right-sized for a particular business is critical for future growth. These survey findings reinforce the need for digital tools that grow with the changing needs of small businesses, and demonstrates the market opportunity for QuickBooks Online Advanced in serving the small business mid-market, said Vincent.

Other Key Findings:

Excess capabilities are a waste of money: About 2 in 5 businesses cite cost as one of the disadvantages to their current ERP system (41%).
Apps are appealing, but as part of an integrated suite: On average small business owners use 19 apps to manage their operations, yet 60% prefer an all-in-one suite of business tools over buying individual digital tools.

Key Resources:

To learn more about QuickBooks Online Advanced, visit: quickbooks.intuit.com/online/advanced/
To read the full survey findings, visit: Growing pains: Mid-sized businesses are challenged to find right-sized digital tools
To read additional mid-market related survey data, visit: New QuickBooks research reveals the impact of late payments on mid-sized businesses

About Intuit

Intuit is the global technology platform that helps consumers and small businesses overcome their most important financial challenges. Serving more than 100 million customers worldwide with TurboTax, QuickBooks, Mint, Credit Karma, and Mailchimp, we believe that everyone should have the opportunity to prosper. We never stop working to find new, innovative ways to make that possible. Please visit us for the latest information about Intuit, our products and services, and find us on social.

¹Nearly half (47%) of respondents say they didn’t use all of their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, feeling like they overpaid for their solution with 1 in 5 (20%) saying they use only a few things or barely used it.

An ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system is defined as a software suite for mid- to large-size businesses that manages and integrates key business functions, including marketing, accounting, sales, costing, strategic planning, and the delivery of manufactured and service-based products.

²Methodology: The survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com) among 1,000 business owners at companies of 10 to 100 employees, between October 14 and October 25, 2021, using an email invitation and an online survey. Data has been weighted to ensure accurate representation of business owners at companies of 10 to 100 employees.