The Australian Government’s Small Business Support Line has assisted 20,000 small businesses in the first year of its operation, with Small Business Minister, Senator Nick Sherry congratulating the support line staff on the milestone in Sydney.
“It has been a phenomenal achievement by the Small Business Support Line staff and I congratulate the 12 agents and their two supervisors who provide what’s become an invaluable service,” Senator Sherry said.
“The Australian Government set up the support facility to help small businesses during the global recession – and it is still proving to be a great success.
” We staffed it with people who have owned, operated or worked in small business and these professionals have been able to directly help 90 per cent of callers and refer the rest to a third party.
“What is particularly heartening is the fact that they provided first-up assistance to start-up small businesses. Getting the right information at that stage could make or break a new business.”
Senator Sherry said a caller from NSW rang in relation to a problem with an ABN that had expired.
“The person was told how to re-activate the number and given general information on ABNs, directed to the NSW Office of Fair Trading and where in the ATO to get relevant information.
“A month later the person thanked the Support Line and said ‘everything was great’. There are many examples like that in the 20,000 who have already sought help.
“The agents are trained to take a call and identify the best solution that will benefit the small business. They will also go the extra yard and call the business afterwards to see if they need further help.
“To all those thousands of small businesses out there who need to overcome small hurdles and don’t have the time or resources to chase it down, I say: ‘Call the support line. They are there for you’.”
The Small Business Support Line can be contacted on 1800 77 7275.