About the study
Money commissioned a survey of an independent panel of 121 Australian business owners, who accepted Government stimulus this year. It sought to understand whether Government stimulus measures were essential to business survival and which measure – JobKeeper payments, the instant asset write off, cash flow boost and SME Guarantee Scheme – business owners considered to help their business the most.
The survey also revealed whether businesses performed better, the same, or worse, as a result of Government stimulus this year, compared with last year.
Money surveyed business owners across a range of industries and organisation sizes: micro (1-10 employees), small (11-50 employees), medium (51-200 employees) and large (more than 200 employees). Respondents also represented various lengths of time their businesses have been operational: young businesses (less than five years in operation) and established (more than five years).
What proportion of businesses accepted Government stimulus measures this year?
69% of businesses accepted JobKeeper payments between April and end-September this year, while 16% of businesses used the instant asset write-off (for the purchasing of cars and equipment), 14% accepted the cash flow boost and 2% took out business finance through the SME Guarantee Scheme (business loans).
A higher proportion of large businesses accepted JobKeeper payments, at 92%, compared with 67% of medium businesses, and 61% of businesses with less than 50 employees.
Across the states, 83% of Victorian businesses accepted JobKeeper payments, followed by 70% of those in Western Australia, 53% in Queensland and 40% in South Australia.
A higher proportion of South Australian businesses used the cash flow boost stimulus measure, compared with 20% of those based in Western Australia, 14% in NSW and 6% in Victoria.
Were stimulus measures essential to business survival this year?
72% of business owners said Government stimulus measures were essential to their business survival. Across the states, 82% of business owners based in NSW said stimulus measures were essential to their business survival, followed by 72% of those in Victoria and 58% in Queensland.
A higher proportion of businesses in the food services industry needed Government stimulus for their survival: 80% said it was essential to their business, compared with 64% of retailers and 33% of businesses in the transport industry.
Which stimulus measure was most helpful to Australian businesses?
69% of business owners cited JobKeeper as the stimulus measure that helped their business the most. In contrast, an equal 14% of business owners found the instant asset write off and cash flow boost most helpful, while 3% cited the SME Guarantee Scheme as most helpful.
The majority of business owners in Victoria said JobKeeper helped their business the most, at 75%. This compared with 63% of those in Queensland and 40% in South Australia. 68% of young businesses in operation less than five years said JobKeeper was the most helpful stimulus measure, compared with 57% of established businesses.
Did businesses do better this year, compared with 2019, due to stimulus measures?
35% of business owners did not experience a drop in business this year, compared with 2019 due to these stimulus measures, while 45% said they were worse off this year.
Across the states, 50% of Western Australian businesses did not experience a drop or increase in business this year, compared with 2019, followed by 40% of those in South Australia and compared with 31% of those in Victoria.
The smaller the size of the business, the more likely they were to have struggled this year, compared with 2019. 55% of micro businesses said they were worse-off this year than last year, followed by 46% of small businesses. In contrast, 43% of medium businesses and 28% of large businesses said they did worse this year.
A high proportion of retailers also said they did worse this year, compared with last year, despite Government stimulus measures, with 55% citing this. This is compared with 25% of those in finance and 17% in telecommunications.
