Small Business News: Your Social Media Presence


Does your small business use social media? Is there a point to you using it for your marketing, networking or customer service? It’s certain that social media is one of the hottest topics in business and marketing today, but how valuable or important is it to your strategy. Here are some resources to consider from around the Web. Thanks for reading!

Strategy

Why a social media presence isn’t for everyone. OK, first, to be fair, social media IS NOT a magic bullet, or more specifically, not every social media platform is for everyone. As in the case with every business, try to determine first who your customers are, how to reach them and how to serve them better. Don’t start with the idea that one tool will make you successful. Small Business Trends

Trends

Why social media is getting more popular. But while you are considering whether social media is right for your small business, understand that these tools are becoming more popular as a marketing strategy. Why? Learn more in this report on a recent survey of small business marketing trends that may surprise you. Lawn & Landscape Market Leadership

Social media usage rate ranking high with small business owners. Check out these numbers on small business usage of social media particularly for Facebook Places and Twitter. One reason small businesses have become increasingly interested in social media has to do with cost and how that cost compares with more traditional marketing and advertising. How would lowering the cost of marketing affect your small business? Survival Guide For Small Businesses

Marketing

What is the ROI on your social media campaign? One of the most interesting aspects of social media campaigns is the way they combine some of the harder to measure but equally important aspects of brand building with traditional marketing. Join Danny Wong, co-founder of Blank Label, for a tour of some of social media’s less tangible benefits. Huffington Post

Why even professional sports is seeing the benefits of social media. This article looks at the professional sports industry’s increased interest in social media from a business perspective. What inspiration can you draw from these examples for your own small business. And to what degree can small businesses leverage a more powerful position than ever before by being in the position to use some of the same tools as the big players? Business Insider

Research

Social media now most popular marketing option. Yet, another take on a popular survey released recently that reveals just how popular social media has become with a very specific small business segment, local businesses. This post takes a more in-depth look at the motivations behind this revolution, mainly dwindling advertising and marketing budgets, and what it may mean for the future. Business News Daily

One local survey of social media marketing. One local consultant decided to take the larger survey and look into how it was affecting her local business community. Here’s what she found about how local merchants were using Facebook in her community and how effective they were in getting their message across and connecting with their local customers using one of the largest social networking tools available.  My Edmonds News

Resources

SBDCs begin to take the lead. Traditional resources for entrepreneurs and small business people would do well to heed the advice of one Iowa small business development center that is now promoting social media marketing not as a fad or trend but as an absolutely necessary tool for business marketing. Is your local small business development center educating businesses about the power of social media? If not, share this link with them. Inc.com

Tips

Maximizing the benefits of social media interns. Want to dip your toes in the social media pool before plunging in head first? One great option is to look to interns as a good source of some help with your social media campaign. The above link gives some strong suggestions on how to be sure you get what you want and need from interns who take part in your social media efforts. Fox Small Business Center

Winning over the skeptics. Try as you may with the data and resources above, there are likely some who will still not believe in the power of social media to transform their small business. For some, it may simply be a matter of stubbornness. For others, it may be about proven results and the way things have always been done. But proving to these doubters the value of social media may still be easier than you think. Multichannel Merchant

3 Comments ▼
3 Reactions
  1. Ahh, thanks! I’m so glad you put all this info together – much easier than wading through Google Reader.

  2. Social media marketing is a lot of trial and error. How do you determine what you are doing is even generating a return? This article was helpful as a guide. If anyone is interested there is a live stream that Black Enterprise will be hosting during their Women of Power Summit that also will be discussing how social media can benefit business owners.

  3. This is a very good recap of the subject from multiple sources. I agree that the SBDCs are understanding it better. Last Fall, I spoke at a couple of these sessions and I think people are really starting to understand the business applications much better. The only thing is that small business owners really need to understand social media is just one piece of their online marketing puzzle, and that technologies like mobile are making social media and text message marketing, for example, much more mainstream. SMBs really can’t ever take off their marketing hat because technology is changing so fast and, therefore, marketing strategies have to be fluid and flexible.