Short-time work in SMEs: Every fifth company converts

Visable - operator of the well-known B2B platforms "Wer liefert was" (Who delivers what) and Europages - conducted a flash survey in the week from March 12 to 19, asking 208 Swiss SMEs online about the consequences of the Corona pandemic. Asked about the reasons for the loss of sales, it emerges that the main problem is the strong uncertainty among customers. This was cited by 71 percent of respondents. However, increased cases of illness in the business also represent a challenge (10.6 %).

Half of SMEs suffer from a decline in orders

Swiss SMEs are already feeling several concrete consequences of the Corona pandemic. More than half (53.4) stated in the Visable survey that there is less demand from customers and orders are declining. Just under a quarter (24.5 %) complain of supply shortages in procurement. However, companies are also affected because employees are sick (16.8%) or are in quarantine (9.6 %). Less significant are sales problems due to dependence on the Chinese market (7.7 %).

Supply bottlenecks in procurement are felt by SMEs primarily in Europe (22.1 %). As many as 17.3 percent of companies are suffering from supply bottlenecks from China. However, there are apparently still no supply difficulties in the USA or other regions.

Short-time work in SMEs and job freezes as immediate measures

In terms of the measures that SMEs are taking, there are two clear thrusts, both of which are gaining roughly equal traction. For example, about one in five companies is already increasing Short-time work (20.7 %) or stop hiring new employees (18.8 %). Only 4.3 percent of SMEs are already reacting with layoffs.

Broad precautions for the protection of employees

Swiss companies are doing a lot to protect their employees. The main measure is the provision of disinfectants. Two thirds (62 %) of respondents have taken this measure. 43.8 percent of companies have mandated home offices. And 40.4 percent are eliminating business travel in the current situation. More than a quarter of companies hold video conferences (26.4 %). Hardly any companies have fever-measurement checks (1.9 %).

Impulsive search for protective masks and disinfectant

With the spread of the coronavirus, the search behavior on Visable's online B2B marketplaces also changed. If, for example, the search terms "mechanical engineering" and "CNC milling machines" are usually among the most searched terms on "Wer liefert was", this changed with the emergence of the coronavirus. In mid-February, "respirators" and "disposable face masks" were in particularly high demand for the first time. "Disinfectant" also suddenly found itself among the top 3 most searched terms - at times, these products even exceeded the queries of the otherwise common top searches. "We have been registering a general increase in search queries for a few days now. Many companies have to look for other suppliers at the moment. Visable also supports its customers in these times with digital solutions for marketing and sales," says Peter F. Schmid, CEO of Visable. "Even we cannot foresee the exact consequences of the pandemic. But one thing is already clear: Digital solutions for industrially active companies have never been as important as they are today," explains Peter F. Schmid.

Source: www.visable.com