Quarterly report - March 2012

The Small Business Support Line is the first point of call for advice and referral services to small business owners who are pressed for time and need answers to business related issues.
The National Support Line links into existing small business support mechanisms including:

Business Licensing Information Referrals;
business.gov.au website navigations;
Business Enterprise Centres; and
State and Territory Governments.

Support Line Advisers have the business experience and customer service skills to assist with all small business related enquiries. As well as providing direct support to small business, the Support Line can put business owners in touch with specialist advisers on a range of matters such as:

business planning;
cash flow management;
marketing and promotion;
registration and licenses;
personal stress and hardship;
and other issues small businesses are dealing with due to the global recession.

From the launch of the Support Line on 3 September 2009 to 31 March 2012 (inclusive), 50,053 calls have been answered and 5,296 emails* sent. Since its launch of the 'Live Chat' service on 15 November 2010, 3,002 customer chats have been initiated..

The Top 5 SBSL call enquiries are:

Obtaining Federal Government Grants and Incentives
Registering a New Company or Business
Everything I need to know about Starting a Business
Where to get Advice & Support on Starting a Business
I need to make changes to ABN

The Top 5 Industry sectors using the support line are:

Retail Trade
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Construction
Accommodation and Food Services
Health Care and Social Assistance

* Total email includes ABN lookup emails sent in the period from 10 May 2010 to 1 July 2011