The survey wanted to understand the state of the market and consider whether small and medium-sized businesses were looking ahead and positioning themselves to take advantage of the inevitable recovery, when it comes.
Tauranga firms, Fraser Accounting and RHB Chartered Accountants, approached their clients to participate in the comprehensive survey.
The survey said it was widely known that the cost of acquiring a new customer was many times that of retaining an existing one.
"If three quarters of companies (which responded) are focusing on the same goal, inevitably it will be at the expense of competitors.
"Where are all these new customers going to come from?
"If you are not vigilant, the answer could be they'll come from your business," the survey concluded.
The survey found that those companies with written business plans were significantly more likely to have enjoyed revenue and earnings growth in the past year.
"What's more, 45 per cent of them plan to take on more staff, and 71 per cent forecast increased revenue in the year ahead," the survey said.
"It's clear that having a written plan drives better performance in several key areas of a business - new product launches, opening new sales channels, innovation, staff skills and understanding customers."
The survey said the tragedy was that only a third of the small medium enterprises (SMEs) have a written business plan, which can be used as a performance-enhancing tool.
"While a plan is no guarantee of success, not having one sets you up for tougher times," the survey said.
Peter Christian, business strategist for Frasers, said some business owners believed a business plan was a large document full of information.
"The common phrase is 'if you do it, then it's left on the shelf gathering dust'. Some believe it's too time consuming and it won't work for them."
Mr Christian said all businesses need to do is a short, two-page plan that is focussed and sets targets. It can be monitored quarterly, six-monthly or yearly. He calls it "a navigation" plan.
"It focuses businesses on what they are doing during that period, and the goals and key performance indicators - sales, turnover and profit - can be measured.
"The written business plan is more like a living, breathing document. The key performance indicators are predictive rather than historical, and they highlight the conversion rate of new sales leads," Mr Christian said.
He said the survey showed that many businesses were not fully aware of the work they had to do to keep moving forward and be sustainable.
"There were some warning signs - if you don't move faster, then the competitor will leave you behind. Understanding the needs of customers has been well known in business for a long time but the trick is getting businesses to do something about that.
"When the economic situation comes right, the marketplace may not have grown and the companies doing well will be taking customers off other businesses. No one can be complacent," said Mr Christian.
Janine Hellyer, a director of RHB, said a commitment to monitoring customer satisfaction is often neglected by small and medium-sized businesses.
"Only a small percentage of companies surveyed are doing this and very few are doing anything to measure staff performance within their businesses."
She said knowing your customers, their needs and wants, is crucial in these highly competitive times where the race for new customers is heating up.
The survey showed that the more mature a company, the more complacent it is in monitoring customer satisfaction.
Just over 90 per cent of those surveyed recognised that having a deep and up-to-date understanding of their customers was extremely important, but only 22 per cent admitted they did an excellent job of doing this.
Nearly 80 per cent agreed that a point of difference, or competitive advantage, was highly important, but only 14 per cent said they did an excellent job of achieving this.
"Thankfully, nearly two-thirds of businesses surveyed are planning on ramping up their efforts at differentiation in the year ahead," the survey said.
"The good news is that 70 per cent of companies are focussed on growing sales from existing customers. While a good number have indicated they'll be looking to reduce costs and undercut competitors on price, significantly more are keen to make their mark by improving their current offer and post-sales support.
"Whatever strategy is chosen, the message everyone should be heeding is clear - look after what you already have because your best customers are also your competitor's best prospects," the survey said.
Over the next year, only 14 per cent of the companies surveyed were expecting to increase bank borrowings, while 24 per cent were expecting to decrease debt.
Nearly half were planning to increase their marketing efforts in the year ahead, led by the wholesale and distribution, retail, tourism and hospitality sectors.
The survey said that over the past year the SMEs spent an average $43,500 on marketing representing about 1.2 per cent of average company turnover.
Growth tips
* Ensure management regularly spends time with customers to help understand future needs.
* Find and develop that "thing" your customers value, and sets you apart from the pack (point of difference).
* Invite customers and suppliers into your business to improve systems from which you all benefit.
* Share your growth plans with staff - ideally get staff to help create them.
* Always keep an eye on your competitors and know exactly what else is out there in the market.
* Identify your competitors' best customers, and remember non-customers are more likely to consider a trial offer as it's less risky.
* Ensure all your communication is consistent - website, packaging, phone manner, advertising. Have an up-to-date, user-friendly and useful web site.
* Analyse promotional offers to understand your return on investment.
* Embrace social media but start with small steps, and trust the experts even though they are probably younger than you.
* Analyse costs across your channels and allocated additional resources to those delivering the greatest returns.
- Source: NZ CA GrowthGuide survey for small medium business 2011
