Life is better as an entrepreneur– a trend revealed via our research of more than 6,000 entrepreneurs. This year, we also learned the American Dream evolved beyond home ownership and the smallest of businesses create major economic impacts, Tucson reigns as a great spot for entrepreneurs and business owners in the U.S. and U.K. have more in common than you might think.  

The research: GoDaddy’s Venture Forward research initiative analyzes more than 20 million online businesses with a digital presence (measured by a unique domain and an active website). Most of these businesses employ fewer than ten people, categorizing each as a microbusiness. While these *microbusinesses may be small, their impact on economies is outsized even though they are often too informal or too new to show up in traditional government statistics. 

Since 2018, Venture Forward surveyed more than 30,000 small business owners with a digital presence, making it the source for microbusiness data and insights. Five of which are shared below. 

1. Life is better as an entrepreneur.  

Sixty-three percent of entrepreneurs in the U.S. and U.K. agree that “life is better as an entrepreneur.” On the reasons why, they cite: creating a source of income / supporting family; connecting to customers; and making an impact in my community.  

2. The American Dream is no longer tethered to homeownership – now small business owners want to feel happy in life, live a comfortable lifestyle and enjoy the freedom to pursue their passions. 

3. Supporting entrepreneurs is one of the only bipartisan issues.  

Mayors are all-in to support their local microbusinesses, and the Mayors of Cleveland and New Orleans Cleveland grew microbusinesses by 20% since 2019 and New Orleans increased microbusinesses by 7% since 2019. The mayors shared their secrets to successfully growing an entrepreneurial community in the panel recap here.  

4. Tucson welcomes entrepreneurs to learn and grow.  

With more than 630,000 microbusinesses in Arizona, Tucson is a hub with more than 50,000 of them. Tucson averages at least seven microbusinesses per 100 adults – growing 8% since 2019. Find out more about entrepreneurship in Tucson through TENWEST.  

5. Microbusiness, major impact. 

U.S. household median income increases by almost $500 per year for each additional microbusinesses per 100 people in a county. In the U.K., people earn £1,400 more in median annual pay for full-time workers in constituencies with a 1% higher concentration of digital microbusinesses. 

Every U.S. microbusiness and U.K. microbusiness entrepreneur adds about seven new jobs on a county-level or constituency-level through hiring and local spending. 

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