Small businesses are essentially the backbone of any modern economic ecosystem and in the US alone, 99% of all businesses are categorized as a ‘small business’. Owning and operating a small business has its own set of unique challenges. While easy to set up and get going, marketing and running all operational facets of the business may be challenging for a sole operator. When it comes to marketing and getting marketing messages out into the world, there is no better channel than social media platforms. And the numbers back it up. A recent Kepios study suggested there were 5.22 billion social media users in the world which equates to 63.8% of the global population. The outlook for the future is also optimistic with 8.1 new social media users added every second. This kind of usage makes social media platforms a practical avenue for small businesses to market brands, goods and services en masse with little to no cost.
The What’s and Why’s of Social Media Marketing
The pure definition of social media is a website or application technology that allows users to create and post content and enables the ability to social network and engage other users along that particular platform. In 2024, the top social media platforms were:
- YouTube
- TikTok
Social media sites are built around the ability of 2 way communication between users and is a core function of the platforms. This presents a unique opportunity for small businesses owners as social media ‘engagement’ is the key to maximize marketing opportunities along these networks. Social media engagement, simply put, is when a business owner (or social media manager) seeks content or postings that are relevant to the business and interacts with users that post or create that content. Engagement also works the other way when users seek information on products and services and interact with brands and businesses. As social media usage continues to ramp up, these platforms become more important to small businesses as a way of connecting with new and existing customers.
A Virtual Extension of the Brand
Using social media platforms as a marketing tool can increase brand presence and ultimately lead to more interactions with potential and existing customers. Different platforms offer varying services and elements to promote business but all start with a basic profile, which is virtually an extension of the business brand. This basic profile must reflect the overall marketing style of the business and should fall in line with existing marketing elements and verbiage. Certain platforms, such as Facebook, enable small businesses to build a ‘page’ dedicated to the brand and can provide centralized management of user to user communications and marketing messages. Business to business sites, such as LinkedIn, offer ‘Group’ tools that can cater to specific niches and topics that offer products and services to other businesses. Researching available tools and features, as well as identifying user demographics of each platform can help small businesses build and deploy the most practical presence to maximize potential opportunities along that particular network.
Using Social Media Platform Features & Services
Increasing adoption of social media has sparked an evolution of how the services are utilized by users and businesses alike. More users are turning to social media for daily tasks and commerce related inquiries while businesses are moving customer service functions onto the most popular platforms. Some key ways small business can use social media functionality:
- Social media as a portal for communication – businesses can enable functions that allow customers a direct line of communication to the brand for general customer service, product and service inquiries and support requests for existing customers.
- Community engagement – social media success depends on engagement and interactions and small business owners and social media managers can actively search for content related to the brand and comment on such content
- Brand extension – Pages and groups within social media ecosystems can be deployed as a store front, allowing customers to seek required information and make purchases directly from the brand but within the social media platform itself
When setting up these secondary outlets for the brand, marketing stylization is crucial to keep continuity intact along different platforms. Maintaining quick and effective response times is a very important factor to consider as users navigate through platforms at a rapid pace and very short attention spans.
The Bottom Line
Social media platforms continue to see increases in usage and have become a very important marketing tool, especially for small businesses with its low or no cost entry into the space. Being a global technology, social media platforms can also offer brand exposure beyond traditional boundaries, potentially increasing customer interactions and engagement. The benefits that social media marketing offers is significant but time and effort are required to capitalize on those benefits. Consistent engagement and activity within the network is essential for success in social media marketing and building brand presence. Small business owners that strategize and plan social media initiates are better positioned to maximize those opportunities that can increase customer interactions and drive business.
