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About the Survey
Since its inception in 1993, the Sensis® Business Index has been one of the most comprehensive and regular surveys of small businesses in Australia . Historically, the Sensis® Business Index has focused specifically on businesses employing 19 people or fewer. In November 2000 it was expanded to cover the medium business sector, while the regional and industrial sectors were also enhanced.
The May 2005 Sensis® Business Index results are based on telephone interviews conducted with 1,800 small and medium business proprietors. The sample size is divided between 1,400 small businesses and 400 medium businesses (the latter defined as businesses employing between 20 and 199 people).
Businesses interviewed for the May 2005 Sensis® Business Index were drawn from all metropolitan and major non-metropolitan regions within Australia . Quotas were set on geographical location and type of business in order to produce the standard sample structure shown below. Where replacement businesses are recruited, this sample structure is maintained.
At the analysis stage, results were weighted by selected Australian New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) divisions within the metropolitan and non-metropolitan region of each state and territory. This ensured the sample reflected the actual small and medium business population distribution. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Business Register, as at June 1998, was used to weight the sample to be representative of the total business population.
Interviewing for this latest survey was conducted over the period 18 April to 13 May 2005.
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