Sage Canada recently conducted a survey  which was a followup to their 2009 Angus Reid-Sage survey on ‘financial literacy’.

The 27-question Small Business Survey, conducted in September and October 2010, was designed to examine the financial state of Canadian small businesses by focusing on their level of ‘financial literacy’ and assessed Sage Simply Accounting customers’ comfort level with financial management and how they manage their finances, obtain financial information and manage their businesses in compliance with government requirements.

Other highlights of the Sage Simply Accounting Small Business Survey include:

• Seventy per cent of respondents said they have been negatively
  affected by the economic downturn, with 14 per cent calling the
  negative impact ‘dramatic.’
• The activities that Sage Simply Accounting customers and business
  owners are most comfortable with are dealing with clients (79%) and
  suppliers (78%), while they were least comfortable with managing sales
  and marketing (67%).
• The majority of small business owners perform financial management
  tasks in-house, with invoicing/billing (91%), payroll (75%) and
  accounting (70%) being the most common tasks completed by themselves or someone else in their company.
• Nearly half (46%) of Sage Simply Accounting customers promptly include
  announced tax code changes into their financial plans for the coming
  year in comparison to less than one-third of respondents in 2009. In
  addition, only one-third of Sage Simply Accounting customers wait
  until they file their tax return to see what effect tax code changes
  had on their taxes versus 69 per cent of respondents in 2009.

Survey Indicates Sage Simply Accounting Customers Are Less Likely to Be Concerned With Government Compliance; More Financially Savvy Than the Average Small Business Owner.

Results of the survey will be further discussed October 20 2010 at Sage Simply Accounting’s Small Business Thought Leadership Panel and at the October 21, 2010 Simply Partnership 2010 conference for Sage Accountant’s Network members.

via Not Surprisingly, More Than Half of Canadian Small Businesses Report That Their Business Success Hinges on Getting Paid in an Efficient Manner – MarketWatch.