All too often, small business owners are so focused on the present that they fail to see big changes which could have a huge impact on their business. Being aware of what’s around the corner can help you adapt your business model and strategy for the coming evolutions.
Here are five entrepreneur trends which will likely affect your small business in 2018.
1. Massive growth in freelancing and self-employment
According to this Nasdaq article,
43% of the US workforce will be freelance or self-employed by 2020 – compared to 34% in 2017.
That’s a big leap, and so we can expect 2018 to be a major year for people starting their own businesses.
2. Growth in remote teams
As a corollary of the expansion in freelancing, we can also expect a huge growth in remote teams working for established companies. As an entrepreneur, you may well employ a number of full time staff in-house, yet the expansion in freelancers means you can also build remote teams of less permanent employees anywhere in the world, supported by cloud apps and email.
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3. Ever more workspace options
We’ve written before about the places freelancers can run their businesses outside of the home. However, in 2018, we expect the range and diversity of workspaces specifically designed for the needs of entrepreneurs to keep on growing. You can expect to find more offices with better deals as the market adapts to growth in demand from solopreneurs and start-ups for low cost and social workspaces.
4. LinkedIn up, Twitter down
It’s no secret that Twitter has struggled to monetize the platform for a long time, and we can expect the number of new users to continue its long term decline. On the other hand, after a massive injection of cash following Microsoft’s buyout, we can expect LinkedIn to keep on growing and become an ever more powerful platform for entrepreneurs and freelancers to find jobs.
5. Regulation of the freelance economy
From Uber to Upwork, we expect 2018 to be the year that regulators begin to play catch up with the gig economy. While for many freelancers, the opportunity to find work online is hugely beneficial, offering a tonne of flexibility and great work, it needs to be acknowledged that it does open some freelancers up to exploitation, poor working conditions and instability. So, we expect more regulations to emerge around the sector next year.
Reckon we’ve missed a major 2018 trend for small businesses? Leave your comments in the section below!