Running your own business has you doing all types of projects, at all hours of the night. The idea of running your day to day business, and then adding to it might seem overwhelming. The good news is that social media can benefit small business owners (like florists!!), the most. According to a survey by Social Media Examiner, social media helps marketers “stand out in an increasingly noisy marketplace.” For small businesses specifically, the survey found:
- The self-employed and small business owners were more likely to report new partnerships, with at least 59% noting a benefit.
- Small businesses were twice as likely to find qualified leads than other types of businesses.
- Forty-eight percent of self-employed and small business owners saw improved sales as a direct result of their social media efforts.
- The self-employed (59%) and small business owners (58%) were more likely than others to see reductions in marketing costs when using social media marketing.
These numbers are huge when you consider other marketing leads don’t seem to provide such a huge benefit. And doing some form of social media marketing is free, in the most basic form, and inexpensive even as you add features and tasks.
If you haven’t yet joined the social media bandwagon, and perhaps you’re wanting to expand your marketing to social media, the good news is that doing so won’t take too much time as you learn to navigate the fresh waters of social media.
The two most used forms of social media are Facebook and Twitter. Following those forms, there is LinkedIn and blogging, ranking third and fourth respectively. Following those is YouTube or various other forms of video sites, then social bookmarking and news sites (i.e. Pinterest), then forums, sites like Foursquare, Social Selling sites, like Groupon, and then MySpace (which is used the least for social media, and likely least overall among users as well).
Consumers look to word of mouth to find the best companies to purchase from. Social media allows word of mouth advertising in it’s most efficient form. Not only do status updates and tweets send customer messages to multiple people (hundreds, if not thousands per customer) but liking or following your page allows potential customers to find immediate satisfaction in learning more about you. In doing so, your updates will keep your company in the forefront of their mind, which allows for repeat advertising every time the customer logs in.
For more ways to help your floral store stand out, please contact us today!
Florists truly qualify as one of those populations that will greatly benefit from social media. The floral industry has a market that uses social media. The challenge already lies in the hands of florists to take advantage of social media as a platform for generating leads.
It’s a smart idea for all businesses to use social media to reach out to a larger market, but florists even more so. Most of their market does use social media, so making a Facebook or Twitter page for your business is a great idea for a florist.
In addition, social media also has a wider reach. Your marketing initiatives through social media can attract more people, compared to doing the traditional way of marketing.
They definitely have the market, but it’s important to use social media in a smart way. Social media can give a big boost, but if used without much thinking and without a global plan, it could be that it’s not giving the desired results. Anyone can use social media, but good marketing requires skills, and very specific skills when it comes to social media.
Thank you, KennyK, for expanding my perspective on that area. I realized that, indeed, having the market is one thing. Doing social media the right way is another. Skills are very important and fortunately, can also be developed.
Yes fortunately those skills can be developed and on the internet you can find so many resources to learn more about social media and find out some secrets or tips to improve your success. It’s one long learning process, probably with some ups and downs, but that’s a good thing.
social media gives a lot of boost for the marketing business and very useful.
Even though social media enables you to easily reach a worldwide audience, think it is especially helpful in marketing to one’s local market. I was truly surprised to find out online about the many local activities scheduled in my small town. People seem to prefer posting their info online, rather than running around town putting up posters and handing out flyers.
I think we also need to bear in mind that, most probably, the returns from your social media initiatives will not be immediately reaped. Some may take a while before you can enjoy your return on investment.
I would say we have reached a point in the online world where not having a social media presence — at the very least on Twitter and Facebook — is almost like not having a Web site. Customers expect to be able to find a company on Facebook and/or Twitter. The statistics you cite in the article should give any business owner an incentive to incorporate social media. Otherwise it is leaving money on the table, as they say.
Aside from that, there is much potential for viral marketing. Give people quality content — informative, picturesque, humorous, etc. — that is worth sharing and they will share.
Small business owners and big companies alike must show their presence on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. Creating a following here can lead to improving the visibility of the brand, increased recognition within the industry and more sales. It’s interesting to see that self-employed people and small businesses are the ones that can benefit the most from the usage of social media. I would have thought that larger companies would get more out of this, but it seems that’s not the case.