According to the 4th Annual Staples National Small Business Survey, it was found that 61 percent of the business owners suffer from “ping-pong syndrome”. This might be due to the constant bouncing between competing work demands and distractions due to poor economy. The growth of the list of the things to be done was considered as the main cause of the syndrome by 51% of the owners.
The study revealed that 41% of the small businesses implemented strict rules and oversight for expenses. 25% of them reduced or eliminated business subscriptions in order to focus on cost savings. 55% of the business owners claimed that more discounts had been asked by the clients. 46% of them revealed that a longer time is taken by the clients for paying. All these might constitute for the financial pressures that rise chances of the syndrome.
The other concern was found to be the use of social media. 70% of the businesses were not found to use social networking sites, webinars, podcasts and other social media. 57% of the businesses made use of their personal Facebook pages. However, 25% of them visit their own personal page daily. Advancing the business in terms of growth is also another concern for rising the syndrome among small business owners.
Economic climatic conditions during 2009 were found to be the major factors for the syndrome. Around 42 percent of the businesses were considered to be closed at that time. The stress and pressure on these areas had a role on the occurrence of ping-pong syndrome among small business owners in the U.S.