European Small and Medium Business Buyer Strategies

Download PDF

Related Links



Meet the Experts

Photo of Andreas Storz
Andreas Storz

Senior Research Manager, EMEA Partnering Ecosystems

Photo of Stuart Wilson
Stuart Wilson

Senior Research Director, EMEA Partnering Ecosystems



IDC's European Small and Medium Business Buyer Strategies service focuses on key market dynamics impacting ICT buying behavior in organizations with less than 1000 employees in Europe – including traditional SMBs as well as digital-native startups. Our analysts provide insight into when and where the most active small and medium business (SMB) segments are likely to generate ICT business growth, who they are buying from, how they are responding to digital transformation and advises vendors on effective go-to-market strategies to target this segment.


Markets and Subjects Analyzed


  • Segmenting the SMB sector by industry, geography, size of company and digital maturity
  • How the market is evolving and key business priorities and challenges
  • The future SMB – an analysis of the technologies required to adapt to a shifting technological ecosystem and the opportunities this presents
  • How SMB and Startups are adopting 3rd platform and innovation accelerator technologies
  • SMB channel – strategies for building an effective SMB channel strategy
  • New routes to market – how SMBs are using cloud marketplaces and other new routes-to-market
  • SMB skills and future of work
  • SMB digital maturity and the road to digital transformation
  • Digital native versus traditional SMB – how do they differ

Core Research


  • European SMB IT Spending Forecasts
  • IT Budget Dynamics, Channel Selection, and Vendor Satisfaction
  • Business and IT Priorities for European SMBs
  • 3rd Platform and Innovation Accelerators in European SMBs
  • The Future SMB
  • SMB Taxonomy

In addition to the insight provided in this service, IDC may conduct research on specific topics or emerging market segments via research offerings that require additional IDC funding and client investment.


Key Questions Answered


  1. Who is the SMB? How do you segment the SMB market and how is it evolving, how does it vary by industry, geography, size of company and digital maturity?
  2. The Future SMB - How is Digital Transformation shaping the way SMBs do business, how mature are they and how will the market evolve over the next 12 months? What opportunities can technology unlock for SMB?
  3. Start-Up versus traditional SMB – how do they differ and how do you engage effectively with both?
  4. Effective SMB strategies – how to define go-to-market strategies that address key obstacles facing SMBs and leverage the channel and cloud marketplaces to effectively engage with this segment?

Companies Covered