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Social Media Adoption By U.S. Small Businesses Doubles Since 2009
American small businesses are pushing the limits on new ways to improve efficiency in the prolonged downturn, including a steady increase in social media adoption. The third wave of the Small Business Success Index™ (SBSI), sponsored by Network Solutions® and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business, reports social media adoption by small businesses has doubled from 12% to 24% in the last year.
The SBSI found that nearly 4 out of 5 small businesses are increasingly investing in social me... including blogs, Facebook® and LinkedIn® profiles.
“In order to meet the growing challenges of a tough market last year, I was forced to consider alternative options to keep my business visible,” says small business owner Dr. Alan Glazier, CEO and Founder,
Shady Grove Eye and Vision Care. “With a very small investment in social media marketing, I was able to generate new business opportunities. Our Google® ranking is consistently number one for many of the phrases people use to search for eye doctors in and around my city and we have received a "bump" in terms of new visitors to the site. My blog has been picked up by different news sources and led to media interviews. I am now recognized as a thought leader in social networking within my profession and lastly but most importantly, my marketing budget has been reduced by more than 80%.”
Top Small Business Concerns with Social Media: 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected. While social media adoption has doubled in the last year, there are still some roadblocks to small businesses fully exploiting its potential. A main concern is the amount of time involved. Another 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the Internet. Related to this, only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it.
“Tough market conditions mandate small businesses to think and act creatively to sustain themselves,” says Connie Steele, Director at Network Solutions. “Social media can be the best friend for small business owners who constantly seek new ways to maximize productivity while keeping costs low. As validated by the SBSI, it is not a question of why small businesses use social media but rather when the adoption rate will accelerate this year.”
The SBSI found that nearly 4 out of 5 small businesses are increasingly investing in social me... including blogs, Facebook® and LinkedIn® profiles.
“In order to meet the growing challenges of a tough market last year, I was forced to consider alternative options to keep my business visible,” says small business owner Dr. Alan Glazier, CEO and Founder,
Shady Grove Eye and Vision Care. “With a very small investment in social media marketing, I was able to generate new business opportunities. Our Google® ranking is consistently number one for many of the phrases people use to search for eye doctors in and around my city and we have received a "bump" in terms of new visitors to the site. My blog has been picked up by different news sources and led to media interviews. I am now recognized as a thought leader in social networking within my profession and lastly but most importantly, my marketing budget has been reduced by more than 80%.”
Customer Engagement Biggest Social Media Usage: 61% of the respondents use social media to identify new customers. The biggest expectation small business owners have from social media is expanding external marketing and engagement including identifying and attracting new customers, building brand awareness and staying engaged with customers. Listen to a podcast on how small businesses can use social media for customer engagement at www.growsmartbusiness.com.
Key social media usage highlights include:
- 75% surveyed have a company page on a social networking site
- 61% use social media for identifying and attracting new customers
- 57% have built a network through a site like LinkedIn®
- 45% expect social media to be profitable in the next twelve months
Top Small Business Concerns with Social Media: 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected. While social media adoption has doubled in the last year, there are still some roadblocks to small businesses fully exploiting its potential. A main concern is the amount of time involved. Another 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the Internet. Related to this, only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it.
“Tough market conditions mandate small businesses to think and act creatively to sustain themselves,” says Connie Steele, Director at Network Solutions. “Social media can be the best friend for small business owners who constantly seek new ways to maximize productivity while keeping costs low. As validated by the SBSI, it is not a question of why small businesses use social media but rather when the adoption rate will accelerate this year.”
Comment
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Comment by Lisa Valentine on April 15, 2010 at 3:39pm -
The following problem still exists: many companies/workplaces are simply blocking access to social media apps on the enterprise network, out of fear and misunderstanding.
There's a good whitepaper on the subject, it's called “To Block or Not. Is that the question?”
http://bit.ly/9f8WOT
It has lots of insightful and useful information about identifying and controlling Enterprise 2.0 apps (Facebook, Twitter, Skype, SharePoint, etc.)
Share that with the IT Dept. It could help the situation.
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