Factors Impacting Small Business Owners Decision Regarding Changes in Customer Base and Geographic Scope

Abstract

T-test comparisons of midwestern small business owners indicate that the decisions to change customer base or geographic scope of marketing are primarily influenced by the owner’s tendency to monitor his/her relevant marketing environment, the owner’s willingness to seek outside marketing assistance during the early stages of the business and by whether they initially were significantly higher or lower in their starting base than owners who did not change. Also, owners who changed their customer base and/or geographic scope were significantly more likely to change the degree of emphasis they gave to their original customers and geographic scope; however, this was not a zero-sum game for those who expanded.