At the end of a SME Instrument project, the beneficiary must send a report to EASME. They are also asked to answer a few questions. Here’s what came out of the first 100 questionnaires filled by SMEs funded under Phase 1 of the programme.
Company growth forecast
These SMEs plan a total of €4.5 bn cumulative turnover during the first 3 years after the commercialisation of their innovative product or service. In total they plan to create 6,300 new jobs during the same period.
Areas of improvement
When asked to tell in which areas the SME Instrument helped them to improve, the SMEs mentioned:
- Better relation with local business support organisations;
- Better understanding of their clients' needs;
- Improved reputation and better visibility of the company;
- Better knowledge of competitors;
- Better understanding of intellectual property issues;
- Better understanding of technical issues.
Sources of funding – what’s next?
All the SMEs plan to apply under Phase 2 of the programme. 67% plan to use their own resources to further develop their business idea, 34% would like to turn to venture capital, and 26% plan to ask for a loan.
19% of the respondents would seek support from business angels, 18% would use national or regional programmes and 13% would turn to other parts of Horizon 2020.
Only 3% of the SMEs would like to resort to crowdfunding.
