A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

In an environment where every vote counts and political races are widely contested, it is unthinkable that any elected official would not reach out to a captive and eager community that comprises one-third of the general electorate.  Yet several months ago, a group of NSBA small-business owners participated in a roundtable discussion with presidential policy experts, and were left with the sinking feeling that, perhaps, small business isn’t even near the top of the priority list. We decided then and there that it’s up to us—the small-business community—to make small business a priority.

What resulted is our campaign, Small Business: 70 Million Strong…And Voting, which seeks to educate lawmakers, candidates and the public on the importance of small business. We’re going to do this the best way we know how: by the numbers.

Did you know that more than one in two people in the U.S. private workforce (56 percent) work for or run a small business, according to data from the U.S. Census and Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy. For the past 15 years, small business has created on average 93.5 percent of all net new jobs—resulting in an average of 4,000 new jobs EVERY day.

In 2007,  54 percent of adults surveyed for the Harris Interactive Poll, Confidence in Leaders of Major Institutions, expressed a great deal of confidence in small-business owners. In the past 34 years, only the military has received confidence ratings as high as small business.

So why aren’t people talking about small-business issues?

It’s up to each one of us in the small-business community—employers, employees, family, friends and customers—to start speaking out as part of a united constituency. I urge you to join our campaign, and let your candidates know that small-business issues matter to you. You can help spread the word by downloading our Web sticker and linking to our site, or simply downloading our e-mail signature button.

Small business represents one-fourth of the overall U.S. population, one-half of the private workforce, and one-third of the voting population in the U.S.— numbers that cannot be ignored. Join us in letting everyone know that the small-business community is a force to be reckoned with.

We are Small Business: 70 Million Strong…And Voting!