Working Paper: NBER ID: w27833
Authors: Georgij Alekseev; Safaa Amer; Manasa Gopal; Theresa Kuchler; JW Schneider; Johannes Stroebel; Nils C. Wernerfelt
Abstract: We analyze a large-scale survey of owners, managers, and employees of small businesses in the United States to understand the effects of the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic on those businesses. The survey was fielded in late April 2020 among Facebook business page administrators, frequent sellers on Facebook's e-commerce platform Marketplace, and the general Facebook user population. We observe more than 66,000 responses covering most sectors of the economy, including many businesses that had stopped operating due to the pandemic. The survey asks 136 questions covering topics such as changes in business operations and employment, changes in financing patterns, and the interaction of household and business responsibilities. We characterize the adjustments implemented to survive the pandemic and explore the key challenges to continue operating or to re-open. We show how these patterns differ across industry, firm size, owner gender, and other firm characteristics.
Keywords: COVID-19; small businesses; economic impact; survey
JEL Codes: G0; M1
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | drop in workload (J22) |
| decreased demand or customer-related reasons (R22) | drop in workload (J22) |
| government or health authority orders (I18) | drop in workload (J22) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | increased online presence (L86) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | difficulties with paying rent (R21) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | difficulties with wages (J31) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | challenges with debt obligations (F34) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | concerns about cash flows (G32) |
| deteriorating financial conditions (F65) | decline in product prices (L11) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | providing online services (L86) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | expanding digital payments (E42) |
| household duties (D13) | impeded business work (N80) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | reduced workforce (J63) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | layoffs (J63) |
| COVID-19 pandemic (H12) | furloughs (J65) |