There are more than 28 million small business owners in the United States, some 80% of whom are non-employers. Small business use of mobile devices—in particular "smart" devices—opens up a world of opportunity, much like it has done in the consumer marketplace, according to Packaged Facts, a a division of MarketResearch.com.

As mobile technology and payments continue to converge, more and more small businesses will look to their smartphones to make payments and meet their financial services needs, according to the market research publisher. ApplePay provides a case in point. Many payments industry observers view Apple's ApplePay mobile wallet as the first product with the potential to push payments into the realm of mobile point-of-sale, which has thus far had difficulty gaining mainstream traction.

Small business participants may make especially strong targets for this payments solution, notes Packaged Facts research director David Sprinkle. For one, they are more likely than average to have an iPhone, especially small business managers: while some 24% of all adults have an iPhone, 36% of small business managers have one. The Packaged Facts report further reveals that small business owner/managers having iPhones are twice as likely to have an American Express business card as those who don't.