How SMBs Use Social Media
Social media companies are some of the most powerful entities in today’s world. Their ability to connect people often goes overlooked because much of the experience of operating online today is adversarial. With the average user spending roughly two hours per day on social media, companies can use that exposure to promote themselves. This is particularly great for small and mid-size businesses. Let’s take a look at how SMBs use social media to their advantage.
How SMBs Use Social Media: Business Types
Very Small Businesses and Self-Funded Startups
For very small business—that is the mom-and-pop shop and the sole proprietorship—social media can be the major marketing outlet for your business. In fact, many bootstrapped startups and extremely small businesses will use Facebook as their exclusive hub for marketing outreach. Since these businesses often don’t have the capital to commit to large marketing initiatives, social media gives them a way to get their brand out there at a modest cost.
For the new entrepreneur looking to build their business from the ground up, Facebook is a very good tool. This platform provides them with the ability to interact with potential customers and share their culture. Other platforms can work for these companies, but without the strategies and services there can be a cap on how effective social media is for the really small business.
Established Small Businesses and Well-Funded Startups
As a company’s marketing budget swells, so do the possibilities, especially with social media. The established small business typically has the revenue to afford a middling marketing strategy. They can use it to create a marketing hub and get their brand out to the world. At this level, many businesses look to purchase the services of a marketing agency. Like managed services, marketing agencies handle marketing for your business so you can focus on doing what you do best.
Startups that are well financed function a bit differently but will also use agency options. They are typically trying to develop products and services. They can use the agency right along with the development of their offerings. This strategy, while unsustainable over time, can produce faster results if and when a product or service is created.
These businesses typically have an established web presence and use Facebook to extend their reach. At this level, tutorial videos, webinars, and other marketing efforts are well established. Using Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram to share their experience, culture, and testimony from satisfied customers goes a long way.
Medium-Sized Businesses
The mid-market business is a large business, make no mistake about it. The accepted size of mid-market businesses is over 500 workers. For those businesses that operate with under five, that seems a million miles away. Mid-market businesses are well-established and their brands are well-known. They have teams of people that actively use analytics to develop their advertising, marketing, and public relations strategies. In the mid-market, companies use social media as needed rather than a constant. Most businesses will have a presence on all major social media outlets. They use social media to fuel their human resources needs. Their social media budgets are much larger, allowing them to take advantage of all services social media companies offer.
What Social Media Platforms are Out There That Have Services for Businesses?
The easy answer to this is all of them. Whether it’s for brand exposure or full-on advertising, the following social media outlets work for businesses:
- Facebook – 1.6 billion daily active users. Facebook is the largest social media firm by leaps and bounds, and it also owns Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram. It is used by over 90 percent of marketers today.
- YouTube – 149 million individual daily users – YouTube is a great resource for the growing business. Not only is it the second largest search engine in the world, the video-sharing giant provides access to homespun content that can take a business’ brand to the next level.
- WhatsApp – 1 billion daily active users. With so much of the world relying on WhatsApp, it can really be a benefit for those companies looking outside their own borders for business.
- Instagram – 600 million daily active users. The photo-sharing website, Instagram has been a big player in the marketing scheme for the past couple of years. Many brands look to build a campaign using influencers who direct business to specific companies.
- Twitter – 134 million “monetizeable” daily active users. Twitter is extremely popular and can be a great way for individuals inside your business to deliver knowledge to others.
- LinkedIn – 303 million monthly active users. LinkedIn is a professional networking platform that many human resources professionals use when recruiting new talent.
Reddit, Tumblr, Pinterest, Snapchat and more are popular platforms.
Technology is rapidly changing the world we live in, and it is definitely changing commerce. Does your business use any of these social media platforms? Which ones do you find useful? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below and return to our blog regularly for more great technology content.
