Social Media for Businesses: Why Do Social Media Marketing for Local Small Businesses?
Wondering why social media for business is hot news in the media right now? Here is a balanced view of social media and social media marketing.
Fortunately, whether social media is going to work for your business starts with a decision that many small businesses have made in recent years. There’s plenty of information to help you decide how social media marketing could work for your business and if it’s worth it.
Who is using social networks? Have you already launched?
Are you using social media marketing strategies and tools to build your local business, to market your products, programs and services, to serve your customers? Your competitors are.
They ensure that their clients (and potential clients) are served 24/7 with:
- Location details, maps, website links, and service or product details on Google.
- Customer reviews and recommendations on Yelp.
- Announcements of events, contests and coupons on Facebook.
- Valuable information and education on your website.
Tough economic times for small businesses and local businesses
These are tough economic times for local small businesses. If you are a small business owner, you may be wondering what to do to find new customers, keep customers coming back, and still have a profit for the wallet in YOUR pocket. Are you spending money on yellow page ads, newspaper ads, and doing more discounts or sales events than ever before?
More than half of the US economy is powered by small, local businesses. Is your business one of many that spend money on advertising, or is it simply surviving on word of mouth marketing, some foot traffic, and the occasional customer who crosses your path because they saw your ad in the “old fashioned” billboard? school”.
“Old School Marketing” VS. New media strategies
But while you’re waiting for your “old-school” advertising to attract more customers, millions of potential customers have switched to finding most of their information online. His fingers no longer walk in the yellow pages.
Increasingly, your potential customers buy products and services only after being reassured by the recommendations of others, something that online social networks and online recommendations offer the discerning buyer.
Local Small Businesses Adopt Social Media Marketing Strategies
According to a report released this week by the Small Business Success Index (SBSI), small businesses are increasing their use of social media. Over the past year, the adoption rate has jumped from 12 percent to 24 percent, doubling usage.
The report was sponsored by network solutions and the Center for Service Excellence at the University of Maryland Smith School of Business. He found that small businesses have turned to social media as a result of the economic downturn and are using social media to identify and attract new customers, build brand awareness and stay engaged with customers.
So now that we’ve come this far, what’s next? As Abby Johnson explains, up to this point, social media has been more about fun than business. Now that the novelty has settled down a bit, Chris Brogan, president of New marketing labsthinks it’s time for social media to be taken more seriously.
Why participate in social networks? What are the benefits?
There are many ways your small business can benefit from participating in one or more social networking sites. As a business owner you can:
- Increase awareness
- maximize exposure
- increase credibility
- Build community and brand loyalty
- multiply profit
- Learn more about your customers
What are the drawbacks?
No matter how you market yourself right now, social media is not a perfect marketing or business-building vehicle. There are some major drawbacks, including:
It can take a long time.
It can take quite a bit of time each day to participate in social networking sites. The key to success is often the amount of interaction you have with other members of the network. Small business owners generally don’t have hours each day to engage on social networking sites. Posting and commenting on other people’s posts can take up valuable time in a business day.
It can be slow to generate results.
Depending on your goals, the social media route can take a lot of time, effort, and patience. It takes time to build an online network. And, if you’re short on time, the short amount of time you do have can mean taking the turtle approach to building a following and boosting your business.
It’s just another marketing tactic to learn and master.
Every marketing tactic you add to your marketing plan is another method to learn and practice. This learning takes time, energy, and sometimes some money. The learning process can be overwhelming, especially if you’re short on time, energy, and money.
There are so many options.
With literally hundreds of social networking sites attracting all kinds of participants, you’ll want to focus on the networks where your efforts will pay off with contacting your target audience for your products or services.
There are good news.
With the right plan and approach, many of these drawbacks can be overcome or eliminated.
Out with the old – In with the new
You have focused your time and money on being a business owner or specialist in your field of practice. Small business failure statistics illustrate that you may not have a handle on your marketing. Even in this economy, 60% of small businesses are spending the same amount on advertising, mostly “old school” marketing (such as print media, business brochures, and cards), and 26% want to spend more. Sixty-nine percent of businesses want to spend their money on online marketing.
