Small businesses with fewer than 10 employees are poised for a strong end to 2014. A just-released survey from SurePayroll, an online payroll services provider, reveals that 81% of small business owners expect to have a profitable second half of the year. That optimism is buoyed by the fact that three in four small businesses met or exceeded third quarter expectations, with more than half saying their third quarter results outpaced the same quarter the prior year.

"The businesses that we work with are your mom and pop shops – really tight-knit operations with just two or three employees – and a really high number of them have worked their way into profitability," said SurePayroll General Manager Andy Roe. "It's tremendous and the excitement is really back in the air for small businesses heading into the year-end stretch.”

SurePayroll’s monthly Scorecard, which surveys microbusinesses nationwide, further revealed that 73% of owners are optimistic about the small business economy. So good is the feeling that 50% plan to make investments in their businesses during the fourth quarter. That’s up from 44% the same time last year.

“We'll look to see more investment from business owners in staff, marketing, and technology, as well as new equipment and even office space," said Roe.