This IDC study profiles small firms with and without full-time IT staff based on a number of demographic characteristics and examines the information sources that they use for Internet services and equipment.

"Roughly three-quarters of the 8 million small businesses in the United States have Internet access and are making increased use of the Internet to gather information on advanced technology products and services," says Merle Sandler, senior research analyst in IDC's SMB Program. "Technology providers can better target their marketing efforts if they have insight into the variety of different sources of information that small firms use to support technology purchase decisions."