Companies located in serviced offices in Northampton may be among the one in three organisations that find red tape causes them problems when exporting goods.
New research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has revealed that there are a number of factors that put people off sending their products abroad.
The government has highlighted that exporting could be a good driver for economic growth and the Services Directive was introduced in 2009 in order to provide advice on how to do so.
However, the FSB found that none of the small firms surveyed were aware that the support was available.
Mike Cherry, policy chairman at the FSB, said: "The Services Directive offers huge potential in breaking down barriers to the single market. With effective communication small firms can make more of this legislation and the opportunities it offers."
The directive is designed to help encourage the growth potential of services markets in Europe by removing administrative and legal barriers.



