According to the Social Media Report published by Sensis in 2011, nearly two-thirds of online Australians have some sort of social media presence. Yet small businesses lag way behind with only 14 per cent having any sort of social media profile.
So just what is social media and why does this represent a marketing revolution?
What’s going on?
Everybody has at least heard about social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube. But these are just a small fraction of an enormous number of internet sites which offer ways to take us back to the good old days of “word of mouth marketing” – the best marketing strategy of them all. The difference is we now have souped-up lines of communication where ideas can spread rapidly and information can be distributed virally without the expense of using mass-media advertising.
Social media is revolutionising marketing because it is based on building strong communities around businesses. Sure, advertisers have been shouting at the general community for decades, but the strategy of actually engaging and building a community around a product or service is quite revolutionary.
Tuning in to your customers
Social media is not merely another new marketing channel to shout out your advertising messages. Its true value is in the new opportunities it presents to develop a better understanding of what your customers really want and what they really think of your organisation. Properly harnessed, the revolution allows organisations to use social media to build a loyal support base of often passionate supporters who then influence other potential customers. The Sensis survey referred to earlier found that medium sized businesses were more savvy about social media, with 25 per cent having some sort of profile, while fully half of big businesses were engaging social media. The irony, though, is that social media marketing is particularly suited to small businesses (which the survey defined as businesses with less than 20 employees).
The benefits to small business
Here are just a few reasons why social media marketing represents such a great opportunity for small businesses:
- Social media is all about projecting a vibrant and authentic personality. Big businesses have to work hard to achieve this image. For small business this is just about being yourself.
- You don’t need to spend a whole lot of money to establish and maintain a social media presence. Yes, the time it takes should not be underestimated, but then is this such hard work, being social?
- Social media requires flexibility and an ability to respond quickly to your audience. Again, small business has the edge over larger business in this regard.
- Social media is a great way to listen to what your customers are saying about you and to find out ways to enhance what your business offers.
- Social media is a great way to build your web presence and make yourself more easily found on search engines, possibly resulting in a flow of customers to your door rather than you having to chase them down.
Winners and losers
The organisations that will gain the most from social media will be those which experiment with multiple channels and figure out ways to measure the impact of their activities. Tools are being developed to better understand the conversations which customers are having about organisations. The insights this could uncover could represent the true value of social media.
So if you’re a boss who’s complaining about the amount of time your staff are spending in sneaking a look at their Facebook feed, perhaps it’s time you directed their passion and knowledge of social media by getting them to help build your online presence. Sure, it’s going to take the implementation of clear guidelines to make sure they’re talking about your business and not their weekend exploits, but it could be the best move you’ve made for a long time.
