Small business marketing trends show favor for free online promotion

April 2, 2013 in Sales and Marketing, Technology

A report from The Boston Consulting Group released this week showed that only about 3 percent of small business owners? advertising budgets go toward online ads. Despite employing close to two-thirds of working Americans and contributing roughly half of U.S. sales, according to the source, mom and pop stores are not taking advantage of online promotional outlets.

However, the report did indicate that?many small businesses are active on free social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. For practical reasons, this makes sense for small business owners. They don?t have the capital that bigger businesses do, which means free promotional tools are more attractive. About 15 percent of national market firms? advertising budgets go toward internet advertising because they can afford it.

Small business funding is always a challenge for the sector, which means a free social media campaign tends to be favored over paid online ads. However, many of these platforms have capitalized on their popularity and are now making a profit from targeted ads.

Social media accommodates small business

Just this week, Twitter announced new tools it has created to help small businesses target their markets more effectively. Among the new features is a two-pronged audience-pinpointing system that allows you to target users by which feeds they follow?as well as by their interests.

Small business sales are driven by customer service. Social media platforms tailor to that need by focusing on interaction with the consumer, making them effective promotional outlets for small business owners. Although less likely to advertise online, they could be won over by social media?s positive impact on sales, making them more likely to pay for targeted ads in the future.

Both Facebook and Twitter offer easy access for small business owners. They can launch ad campaigns from the comfort of their homes. Free guides, suggestions and small business marketing tips are offered on the sites, which provide owners with resources traditional advertising often does not provide. ?

According to the company?s website, Twitter has about 200 million users across the world, speaking more than 33 languages. Of the Twitter users who follow brands, 94 percent do so to hear about discounts and promotions.

As for the other major social media platform, Facebook, 618 million users are active?daily on the service. Some organizations have been particularly successful at promoting their brands on Facebook. According to Facebook, adventure-racing company?Tough Mudder?increased its sales by 24 times just two years after it started advertising on the social media site.

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