UCLA Anderson Forecast Develops Unique Index to Track Online Microbusiness Activity; Initial Report Shows How Microbusinesses Contribute to Local Economic Growth

- Success hinges on digital infrastructure, education and skills training, and access to capital

- An analysis of data provided by GoDaddy's Venture Forward initiative led to the findings

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Jul 22, 2021, 11:00 ET

LOS ANGELES, July 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- UCLA Anderson economists Leila Bengali and William Yu have created a pioneering index to track the activity of online microbusinesses at the national, state, core-based statistical area (CBSA), and county levels, demonstrating for the first time activity of an important but often overlooked driver of the economy.

The index was developed based on data provided by GoDaddy's Venture Forward initiative, a multiyear research effort to quantify the impact online microbusinesses have on local economies.

The UCLA Anderson Forecast economists' first report based on the Venture Forward data examines how online microbusinesses fared during the pandemic, how such companies are distributed across the U.S., and what local factors contribute to their formation and growth.

"Our aim was to create an index that measures online microbusinesses, and that picked up facets that correlate with local labor markets and economic activity," Bengali and Yu said in a statement. "The index and report shows through statistical techniques the unique characteristics and substantial impact microbusiness owners and their businesses have on their local economies."

Venture Forward analyzes the economic impact of the 20 million U.S. online microbusinesses GoDaddy customers have created. A microbusiness is defined as a discrete domain name with an active website (for example, an online store), with the vast majority having 10 employees or fewer.

"GoDaddy sees directly the outsized impact of microbusinesses on their owners and local communities, especially notable during such a trying time as the COVID pandemic," said Jeremy Hartman, Vice President, Venture Forward at GoDaddy. "This index and report provides an easy way to make this impact come to life for everyone, which also helps everyone's understanding of the unique needs of microbusiness owners."

Bengali and Yu arrived at four conclusions in their report, which is available in full here:

Digital infrastructure: Broadband facilitates the formation and enhances the success of online microbusinesses, as counties with a higher fraction of residents with broadband access tend to have stronger labor market outcomes.
Education and access to skills training: At least some measures of the relationship between human capital and skills training are positively related to online microbusinesses, even after controlling for various county characteristics.
Access to capital: Formal lending institutions do help online microbusinesses, but a regression analysis and case study also suggest that these online microbusinesses need to access capital in a different way or in smaller quantities than do other businesses.
Microbusinesses and the local economy: Counties with more online microbusinesses per capita tended to have stronger labor markets, as measured by the unemployment rate and the employment-to-population ratio, and even after controlling for other factors. This finding, combined with survey evidence from GoDaddy, suggests that online microbusinesses contribute to economic growth at the local level.

This report is one of a series of analyses conducted by the UCLA Anderson Forecast.

About GoDaddy
GoDaddy is empowering everyday entrepreneurs around the world by providing all of the help and tools to succeed online. GoDaddy is the place people come to name their idea, build a professional website, attract customers, sell their products and services, and manage their work. Our mission is to give our customers the tools, insights and the people to transform their ideas and personal initiative into success. To learn more about the company, visit www.GoDaddy.com.

About UCLA Anderson Forecast
UCLA Anderson Forecast is one of the most widely watched and often-cited economic outlooks for California and the nation and was unique in predicting both the seriousness of the early-1990s downturn in California and the strength of the state's rebound since 1993. The Forecast was credited as the first major U.S. economic forecasting group to call the recession of 2001 and, in March 2020, it was the first to declare that the recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic had already begun. uclaforecast.com

About UCLA Anderson School of Management
UCLA Anderson School of Management is among the leading business schools in the world, with faculty members globally renowned for their teaching excellence and research in advancing management thinking. Located in Los Angeles, gateway to the growing economies of Latin America and Asia and a city that personifies innovation in a diverse range of endeavors, UCLA Anderson's MBA, Fully Employed MBA, Executive MBA, UCLA-NUS Executive MBA, Master of Financial Engineering, Master of Science in Business Analytics, doctoral and executive education programs embody the school's Think in the Next ethos. Annually, some 1,800 students are trained to be global leaders seeking the business models and community solutions of tomorrow. anderson.ucla.edu

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SOURCE UCLA Anderson Forecast