The survey conducted on a 1,000 small businesses in the US, revealed that 56% of smartphones used by small business employees for business purposes are 4G, a 70% rise from 33% in the previous year.

About 66% of small businesses replied it would be tough to survive without wireless technologies, while 41% small businesses reported all their employees use wireless devices or wireless technologies while working away from the office.

AT&T Small Business Solutions executive vice president Cathy Martine said that the wireless solutions have become part of the small businesses DNA.

She said: "With the ongoing growth of remote workforces and with virtual offices gaining in popularity, mobility solutions from AT&T are becoming more important than ever in helping small businesses work better, smarter, and faster."

More than 69% of small businesses in the survey reported use of tablet computers, while 85% of them used smartphones which is double the usage five years ago.

About 31% of small businesses surveyed used mobile apps, where 74% used tools like GPS navigation and mapping, 43% utilised location-based services, 35% document management, 32% social media marketing and 30% mobile payments.