RTM: My impression is that almost no one feels they have successfully targeted SMBs. Why do you think that is so?

RW: Most big companies have a misconception of what SMBs look like.  They think, for instance, that they are business people who make rational decisions.  I would argue that the vast majority behave more like consumers.  They are people who run businesses, not business people.  Most marketeers in large companies think that SMBs look like the models they use when they do a photo-shoot of small businesses.  They don’t.

RTM: How do you mean?

RW: My son is starting a car-valeting business and it is fascinating to go with him to see all the backstreet motor traders and tool shops he is targeting.  That is what SMBs look like.  They are guys who are trying to make a living.  And that is another important thing that most suppliers have yet to grasp.  These people are in business to make a living, not to build a business empire.  Their businesses are lifestyle support machines, which they are only interested in growing if they can retain control.

RTM: Which means they tend to be profoundly conservative?

RW: Often, yes.

RTM: What do you mean when you say they behave like consumers, rather than like business people?

RW: They often fail to invest time in making rational decisions.  For instance, I did some work for a mobile-phone company and we found that most SMBs simply selected the mobile-phone network the boss was using. 

The mentality was: "It’s good enough for the governor, so let’s just add a few more phones."  Often they didn’t even study the tariffs.  The choice of supplier doesn’t come under the heading of managing the business, but is more a by-product of having to do business.

“They are people who run businesses, not business people.”

RTM: Whilst a large corporate…

RW: ...would have technical and financial experts who would study the question and come up with a solution.