It’s been a bumpy few years for Canadians, navigating the effects of COVID-19. This rings particularly true for small businesses, who employ 90% of our private sector, are the backbone of Canada’s economy, and had to find ways to develop and scale their online presence in order to adjust to our new reality. We know that businesses owned by Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour were disproportionately impacted – almost 80% of Indigenous business owners say their revenue decreased by 30% (vs 68% of all businesses). As we enter a new year, we have an opportunity to build back a more inclusive and resilient digital economy.
Pre-pandemic, we saw only one in five businesses in the retail sector selling online. Now Canadian e-commerce has almost doubled since 2019, making us the second fastest growing e-commerce market worldwide. In fact, through our ShopHERE powered by Google program, over 25,000 Canadian businesses, 64% of which identity as women-owned and 33% of which identify as BIPOC-owned are now selling online.
The next step for small businesses is to think about how their business can grow sustainably, in such an ever-changing, unpredictable environment. With 75% of Canadians spending more time on the internet, small business owners need to both actively manage their digital storefronts and continuously stay in touch with consumer behaviors. It’s more important than ever to show up where customers are searching.
To help more small businesses succeed in this increasingly online world, we have a number of free tools and resources like Google for Small Business, Grow My Store, and Market Finder that help you optimize your online presence and marketing strategy in Canada and abroad.
I feel optimistic that 2022 is going to be a safe and prosperous year for Canada’s small business community and it’s encouraging to see more and more business owners get on board and really understand the opportunity that building an online presence can create.
Tristan Lee
Head of SMB Marketing, Google Canada
Tristan is Google Canada’s Head of Small and Medium Business Marketing. He and his team are dedicated to helping small and medium businesses embrace the power of digital to succeed in Canada and abroad. Prior to joining Google, Tristan spent 6 years in Brand Management at Procter & Gamble, leading marketing for a number of the company’s health and beauty brands.
