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The coronavirus pandemic has continued to take a catastrophic toll on America’s small businesses. According to Facebook’s State of Small Business&nbsp;<a href="https://dataforgood.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/SMBReport.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>, 31% of small businesses and 52% of personal businesses have stopped operating as a result of the crisis.&nbsp;



“What we know today is pretty sobering,” says Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. “We’re in a really hard economic situation that is hitting all businesses, but particularly, small businesses really hard. We also know how critical small businesses are for jobs—long before coronavirus,” she says. “Two thirds of new jobs in this country happen because of small businesses and so that means what’s happening with small businesses has always been important, but it’s more important than ever.”



Especially concerning is that only 45% of business owners and managers plan to rehire the same number of workers when their businesses reopen. That number is just 32% for personal businesses. 



“If these businesses are letting people go, it’s not that they don’t want to rehire them,” Sandberg says. “It’s because they don’t think they’re going to be able to. That’s a pretty serious thing for us to be facing.”



Businesses that have been able to maintain operations still face significant hurdles, namely access to capital and customers. Some 28% of businesses surveyed say their biggest challenge over the next few months will be cash flow, while 20% say it will be lack of demand. 



The report, conducted in partnership with the Small Business Roundtable, was based on a survey of 86,000 owners, managers and workers at U.S. companies with fewer than 500 employees. It is also a part of the company’s broader data collection initiative with the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on the Future of Business.



“We were already in the process of developing this report before the coronavirus pandemic hit,” Sandberg says. “We expected it to be a pretty rosy tale back then of low unemployment, flourishing entrepreneurship, and jobs growing all over the world. Fast forward to today and we’re in a very different position.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="960" height="540" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/facebook.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-45576" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/facebook.jpg 960w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/facebook-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/facebook-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/facebook-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px" /><figcaption>An example of Facebook&#8217;s new Shops feature, which creates digital &#8220;storefronts&#8221; for businesses.   FACEBOOK</figcaption></figure>



Now, the company is launching&nbsp;<a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2020/05/introducing-facebook-shops/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Facebook Shops</a>, an ecommerce product that allows businesses to set up online “storefronts” on Facebook and Instagram. Businesses can customize their digital shops, using cover images to showcase their brands and catalogs to highlight their products. And just as customers can ask for help when shopping in physical stores, they can message business owners directly via WhatsApp, Messenger or Instagram Direct to ask questions, track deliveries and more. “Our goal is to make shopping seamless and empower anyone from a small business owner to a global brand to use our apps to connect with customers,” wrote Facebook cofounder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10111927602176421" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">post</a>&nbsp;announcing the new product. As was the case with the survey, the rollout was planned prior to the pandemic, but was accelerated as businesses have turned to online tools to adapt in the face of the ongoing crisis. According to the survey, 51% of small business owners have&nbsp; increased their online interactions with customers, and 36% of operational businesses are now conducting all sales online.&nbsp;



“One of the things I find so amazing is how much of the activity has migrated online and that we’re doing things we never thought were possible,” says Sandberg. “If I had asked you or you had asked me, could I work entirely from home? Can my whole company go home? I would have said ‘No way.’ But we did it. Small businesses have even more entrepreneurial spirit.”



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There are more than 30 million small businesses in the U.S., many of which are struggling to stay afloat amid forced closures and are still hoping to receive financial relief from the government. According to a recent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.goldmansachs.com/citizenship/10000-small-businesses/US/infographic-small-business-relief/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">survey</a>&nbsp;by Goldman Sachs, 71% of Paycheck Protection Program applicants are still waiting for loans and 64% don’t have enough cash to survive the next three months. As of April 19, more than 175,000 businesses have shut down—temporarily or permanently—with closure rates rising 200% or more in hard-hit metropolitan cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago, according to Yelp’s Q1 Economic Average&nbsp;<a href="https://www.yelpeconomicaverage.com/yea-q1-2020.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>.



Employees of these businesses are disproportionately affected, with 74% and 70% reporting not having access to paid sick leave and paid time off, according to Facebook’s survey. For hotel, cafe and restaurant employees, those figures are over 90%.



Facebook, which relies heavily on small businesses for advertising revenue, was among the first major tech companies to provide much-needed aid. On March 17, the company announced $100 million in grants for small businesses, the majority of which will be distributed in cash, with some ad credits for business services. Of those funds, $40 million will be distributed across 34 American cities, with 50% being reserved for women, minority and veteran-owned businesses. The other $60 million will be distributed to small business owners throughout the world. In addition to financial assistance, the company also rolled out various product offerings including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">digital gift cards</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/fundraisers" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fundraisers</a>&nbsp;and easier ways for businesses to communicate service changes to their customers.&nbsp;



Small businesses are resilient, even during times of crisis. According to the report, 57% of businesses are optimistic or extremely optimistic about the future, with only 11% of operating businesses expecting to fail in the next three months, should current conditions persist.&nbsp;



“The report raises awareness about the struggles small businesses face from the Covid-19 pandemic,” says Rhett Buttle, founder of Public Private Strategies and co-executive director of the Small Business Roundtable. “But small businesses have brought us out of previous economic downturns and they will do so again.”



&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maneetahuja/">Maneet Ahuja</a>, Forbes Staff, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs">Entrepreneurs</a>

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31% Of Small Businesses Have Stopped Operating Amid Coronavirus: Sheryl Sandberg Shares How Facebook’s Latest Product Aims To Help

Sheryl Sandberg has the weight of the world on her shoulders. The chief operating officer of Facebook isn’t just responsible for helping to lead one of the world’s most polarizing companies through a global pandemic, but for the 2.26 billion people who visit its platforms every day. With about one third of the global population at her fingertips, the World Health Organization is counting on the social media giant to help in the fight against COVID-19.



“This crisis is unprecedented,” says Sandberg. “I take my responsibility really seriously.” Just last week, Facebook&nbsp;<a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2020/04/coronavirus/#coronavirus-info-center" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">launched</a>&nbsp;its coronavirus information center, a module at the top of users’ news feeds with real-time updates from the WHO, and on April 9, the organizations partnered on WhatsApp health alerts that will answer frequently asked questions about coronavirus.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Facebook’s recent failures to protect users from data breaches and misinformation are not lost on the tech executive. These missteps, she says, have prepared the company for this very situation. “We have been working towards not just regaining trust but doing the right thing all the way through,” Sandberg says. “We now know what misinformation is and how to find it. We know how to take it down—and we also know we need to rely on other people [like the WHO and CDC], because we can’t get this right ourselves.”



Sandberg also believes that the strength she’s gained through her personal hardships, namely, the death of her husband Dave Goldberg five years ago, have better equipped her to lead through this crisis. “The biggest challenge I ever faced, which dwarfs anything else I ever went through, was losing my husband and losing him very suddenly,” she says. “And that is a totally different thing than what is going on with coronavirus. But there are some similarities in anything that happens suddenly and is a negative event. The work I did for my book,&nbsp;<a href="https://optionb.org/book" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Option B</a>, was all about figuring out what we do in these negative events and how we grow from them,” she explains.&nbsp;



Sandberg says that she, like many Americans, has been inspired by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who in a recent daily briefing, mentioned finding joy in the face of hardship. “Everyone has heard about post traumatic stress disorder,” she says. “But more people actually experience post traumatic growth than PTSD, even though no one has heard of it,” Sandberg adds. The thinking is that traumatic events help us learn and grow. “The surprising conclusion in this is that we can actually improve our lives through the things that are hardest,” says Sandberg. “I learned so much from Dave dying. But my life is very different, and in many ways, there’s really big things I learned, like to find the good and find the community and that through real hardship, you develop strength. If I could give all that learning back to have Dave back, I would—very much, but I can’t.” She adds that even in the darkest of times there are lessons to be learned. “Even in the face of losing my husband, can you find moments of joy? Absolutely. You can and you should. And that is the way we recover and learn from these types of events.”



So far, those lessons seem to have served her well. Facebook, which relies heavily on small businesses for advertising revenue, was among the first of the major tech companies to provide aid. “We talk to small businesses all the time and what they told us they needed [most] was just financial help,” Sandberg says. On March 17, the company&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maneetahuja/2020/03/17/facebook-announces-100-million-grant-for-small-businesses-being-impacted-by-coronavirus/#1d8b21524d4c">announced</a>&nbsp;$100 million in grants for small businesses. As of Saturday April 11, the company had already received over half a million emails of interest in the program. Of the $100 million, $40 million will be allocated to 10,000 small businesses in the U.S. across 34 cities, with 50% being reserved for women, minority and veteran-owned businesses.&nbsp;The other $60 million will be distributed to small business owners throughout the world.



“Everyone is concerned about the effects of coronavirus, but women and women of color are much more disproportionately affected,” Sandberg says, citing new&nbsp;<a href="https://leanin.org/article/the-coronavirus-is-a-financial-crisis-for-women" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">research</a>&nbsp;by her Lean In initiative, which finds employed women are nearly twice as likely as their male counterparts to not be able to pay for necessities for more than a month if they lost their personal income. “It’s like everything else, women are the backbone of our families and communities and women get hit hardest.”



The company is also working with the U.S. Small Business Administration to send notifications encouraging an estimated 30 million small business owners around the nation to apply for relief loans. While one third of U.S. small businesses don’t have a website, most have Facebook pages, putting the platform in a unique position to get the word out.&nbsp;



“Small business&nbsp;is&nbsp;our business,” Sandberg says. “We have 140 million small businesses around the world that use our products every single day and our goal is to help them get through this.”&nbsp;To that end, the tech behemoth has rolled out various tools to support small businesses during this unique time, including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">digital gift cards</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/fundraisers" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fundraisers</a>&nbsp;and easier ways for businesses to communicate service changes to their customers.&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5e95b21301879f0006d28805/960x0.jpg?fit=scale" alt="Sheryl Sandberg meets with small business owners in London earlier this year. "/><figcaption>Sheryl Sandberg meets with small business owners in London earlier this year.&nbsp;FACEBOOK</figcaption></figure>



According to a recent <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.goldmansachs.com/citizenship/10000-small-businesses/US/no-time-to-waste/" target="_blank">survey</a> by Goldman Sachs, 96% of small business owners report having been impacted by COVID-19, while more than half say they will not be able to operate their business beyond three months. Sandberg believes social media can help. “We’re seeing amazing things happen because businesses can’t do business the way they normally do,” Sandberg says. “So on the one hand, some businesses need to shut but on the other hand, some businesses can pivot.” 



<a href="https://www.facebook.com/Leanne.MagicArtsStudio/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Magic Arts Studio</a>, for example, a Morrisville, Pennsylvania, arts and crafts business, has embraced online learning, with its teachers offering free classes via Facebook Live. Sandberg’s favorite example is Bristol, England-based&nbsp;<a href="http://www.thismumruns.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">This Mum Runs</a>, an e-commerce business that started as a Facebook group for running enthusiasts that has recruited more than 250 volunteers to make grocery and pharmacy deliveries for those in need.&nbsp;“This Mum Runs is an organization that has community and purpose baked into its DNA,&#8221; says Mel Bound, founder and CEO of This Mum Runs. &#8220;These are the things that have enabled us to respond quickly and in a meaningful way to the crisis affecting us all—to support those most in need whilst keeping our community safe and active.&#8221; As small businesses around the world face an uncertain path forward, businesses like these may serve as inspiration for others to find innovative ways to operate in this new normal.&nbsp;“This is people rejuvenating their own businesses, shifting their businesses online and reaching people in a different way,” Sandberg says. “And so I do think there’s very much a new Main Street happening right now.”



Small businesses are not the only ones Facebook is trying to actively support. Last month, Facebook launched its Business Resource Hub, featuring resources and recommendations to help all businesses stay connected and on track, as well as direct access to credible information about COVID-19 to help them stay informed. This past week, the company launched a series of “vertical playbooks”, or resiliency guides for businesses like&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource/restaurants?lead_source=business-resource-hub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">restaurants and cafes</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource/retail?lead_source=business-resource-hub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">retail</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource/salonandspa?lead_source=business-resource-hub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">salons and spas</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource/fitness?lead_source=business-resource-hub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fitness and recreation centers</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/resource/partners?lead_source=business-resource-hub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">partners and agencies</a>&nbsp;and even&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/facebookmedia/solutions/coronavirus-resources" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">media and publishers</a>.&nbsp;



Whether or not Facebook’s efforts will make a difference for small businesses, only time will tell. The same can be said for the company’s attempts to earn back people’s trust. “I’m not saying people have always understood this but we’ve actually been trying to do the right thing all along,” explains Sandberg. “When the mistakes happened, we certainly didn’t do them on purpose and we looked to fix them as quickly as possible. And I think we did act responsibly, all the way through. Now it may be that people are able to see things differently because the world has shifted so dramatically. But our approach is to always do the right thing and to make sure we address the problems and look to prevent the next one,” Sandberg says. “And that’s the same approach we’ve had all along.”



&#8211;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maneetahuja/">Maneet Ahuja</a>, Forbes Staff.

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Exclusive: Sheryl Sandberg On Leading Through Crisis And Facebook’s Efforts To Save American Businesses

The net worths of big tech’s blue chip billionaires jumped Thursday as soon as stock markets opened. The gains came after both Facebook and Microsoft reported better than expected revenue growth on Wednesday after the market closed. Altogether the value of Facebook and Microsoft shares held by 27 billionaires rose $7.4 billion, thanks to the strong earnings reports.



The biggest gainer by far was Facebook CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/mark-zuckerberg/#76f154083e06" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mark Zuckerberg</a>, the largest individual shareholder in the social network he founded in a Harvard dorm room 15 years ago.&nbsp;Zuckerberg’s fortune rose $3.9 billion on Thursday to $71.8 billion.&nbsp;



Despite concerns over its platforms’ data security and privacy, Facebook’s quarterly revenue exceeded $15 billion, a 26% year-over-year increase. The company estimates that 2.1 billion people use one of its services every day. Its share price on Thursday rose 5.8% to $193.26.



Facebook also disclosed a $3 billion to $5 billion legal charge from the FTC, which it claims dragged its diluted earnings-per-share down 55%. The penalty seems to be tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kennethcorbin/2019/04/25/with-billions-at-stake-is-facebook-getting-serious-about-privacy/#51b80cd17ed4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sparked a national conversation</a>&nbsp;about the social media giant’s usage of user data. But investors seemed to shrug off that news.&nbsp;



“We’re making significant investments in safety and security while continuing to grow our community and our business. This quarter once again, shows that we can do both,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/sheryl-sandberg/#24035a5c58b6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sheryl Sandberg</a>, Facebook’s billionaire chief operating officer. The 22 billionaire Facebook shareholders’ stakes&nbsp;are&nbsp;collectively&nbsp;worth $5.7 billion&nbsp;more as of 4:30 pm ET Thursday&nbsp;compared to the market close on Wednesday.



The day’s second-biggest gainer was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/steve-ballmer/#6f6c30644818" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Steve Ballmer</a>, the former Microsoft CEO who still holds more shares in the software giant than any other individual.&nbsp;His fortune jumped $1.2 billion, to $48.2 billion.



Microsoft’s earnings&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jjkinahan/2019/04/25/with-earnings-season-turning-out-better-than-expected-market-mostly-upbeat/#4f0f5fa5553e" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">shattered expectations</a>, with diluted earnings per share up 20%. Its quarterly revenue climbed 14% to $30.6 billion, largely on the back of its commercial cloud business, which alone has jumped 41% year-over-year.



Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 as its 30th&nbsp;employee and served as CEO from 2000 to 2014. He bought the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers from fellow billionaire&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2016/11/19/billionaire-donald-sterling-settles-lawsuit-with-the-nba-over-clippers-sale-to-steve-ballmer/#5ff22915275c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Donald Sterling</a>&nbsp;in 2014&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2016/11/19/billionaire-donald-sterling-settles-lawsuit-with-the-nba-over-clippers-sale-to-steve-ballmer/#5ff22915275c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">for $2 billion</a>. Ballmer has put $2 billion into a donor-advised fund focused on addressing poverty in America.



He’s not Microsoft’s only big winner today. Cofounder and former CEO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/bill-gates/#5e3c50ed689f" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bill Gates</a>&nbsp;sold or gave away most of his shares years ago but still enjoyed a $400 million boost. According to Forbes’&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/real-time-billionaires/#177b3ef83d78" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">real time wealth tracker</a>, he’s now worth $101 billion,&nbsp;one of just two centibillionaires alive, beaten only by Jeff Bezos. (Bezos’s net worth could&nbsp;skyrocket during trading&nbsp;Friday&nbsp;in the wake of&nbsp;a&nbsp;strong quarterly&nbsp;earnings report from Amazon today.)



Overall, the nine members of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/billionaires/#24ecdcbf251c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Forbes World Billionaires list</a>&nbsp;who have significant stakes in Microsoft—a verifiable “who’s who” of investors that include Gates, Ballmer,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/reed-hastings/#28414fa42782" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reed Hastings</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/charles-simonyi/#14bc0c9f6639" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Charles Simonyi</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/penny-pritzker/#2debe58c216e" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Penny Pritzker</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/mark-stevens/#2b9bc6f1345a" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mark Stevens</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/herbert-wertheim/#3bfb9dd9577a" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Herbie Wertheim</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/robert-duggan/#31bb751a526d" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Robert Duggan</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/reid-hoffman/#2f4b31cb1849" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reid Hoffman</a>—saw their fortunes rise a combined $1.7 billion.



Not every billionaire won after Wednesday earnings. Billionaire&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/#1ba3a63e7999" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Elon Musk</a>lost over $650 million of his net worth, with Tesla facing a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2019/04/24/tesla-returns-to-the-red-with-bigger-than-expected-702-million-loss/#667cc7a7a2af" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bigger-than-expected $702 million loss</a>.



“This was one of the most complicated quarters I can think of in the history of the company,” Zachary Kirkhorn, Tesla’s new CFO, said on a conference call with analysts.



-Carter Coudriet; Forbes Staff

Tag: sheryl sandberg

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From Sheryl Sandberg To Tory Burch: Power Women Pay Tribute To Ruth Bader Ginsburg

31% Of Small Businesses Have Stopped Operating Amid Coronavirus: Sheryl Sandberg Shares How Facebook’s Latest Product Aims To Help

Exclusive: Sheryl Sandberg On Leading Through Crisis And Facebook’s Efforts To Save American Businesses

Zuckerberg, Ballmer Gain Combined $5.1 Billion After Strong Microsoft, Facebook Earnings