Recent BT research reveals four in five small businesses have adopted new tech in the last year, but as the UK moves away from analogue networks, BT is urging companies to move to digital by the end of 2025.
Will Kirk, star of hit BBC show The Repair Shop, has joined forces with BT to encourage the UK’s heritage businesses to go digital – as new research shows two in three small firms (67 percent) say technology is keeping their traditions alive.
However, a fifth (22 percent) still see themselves as “analogue-first” – relying on tech like traditional landlines, paper contracts, physical filing and fax machines to do business.
The woodwork expert and Heritage Crafts ambassador wants to show how moving from analogue to digital can preserve traditional businesses’ historic ways of working, enable them to reach new audiences, and make it easier to manage their operations.
The call comes as four fifths (81 percent) of businesses started before 1900 say tech has helped to preserve their traditions.
BT’s research reveals that three-quarters of small business leaders believe new technology has ensured their company’s survival, and nine in ten say digital tech has opened new revenue streams.
The study also shows that the UK’s SMB community has been investing in technology this year, with most seizing the opportunity to boost their networks and digital tools in 2024.
Four in five small firms (78 percent) say they have introduced new technology in the last 12 months, with around half investing in a new website, followed by increased cybersecurity (48 percent) and social media (45 percent).
Two in five (40 percent) describe their small business as being a tech company, or one driven by advanced technology such as AI, robotics, or data analytics.
BT’s research comes as the UK is undergoing a tech upgrade, moving to digital networks as the ageing copper-based PSTN approaches retirement at the end of January 2027, after more than four decades in operation.
BT is supporting businesses in the move from analogue to digital, and is urging companies to migrate over to more modern networks by the end of 2025 to help switch on to the benefits of digital networks, including better stability, security and efficiency.
Kerry Small, Chief Operating Officer – Business at BT, commented: "These figures show that the majority of the UK’s small businesses have been in upgrade mode this year – embracing the tech to help them thrive in a digital world.
“Analogue companies making the move now can rely on rock-solid digital connectivity to help keep them in business for years to come.”