Small firms use social media

Increasingly more small businesses are using social media as a promotional tool, according a new survey.

A study among 269 small businesses, carried out by Daryl Willcox Publishing found that 54% use social media such as Facebook, Linked In and Twitter on either a daily or a weekly basis,

Small businesses are using this form of marketing to communicate and build a real rapport with their customers and other businesses, while raising brand awareness and driving traffic to their websites.

35% of small firms update such sites on a daily basis, 25% update every few days and 17% use on a weekly basis.

Of those not using social media, more than a third claimed their customers do not use it whereas a similar number said they did not have the time. One quarter said they have no understanding of the medium.

The research found that LinkedIn was the most popular, with 73% of firms using it. 64% claimed they use Facebook and a similar 63% said they used Twitter.

Daryl Willcox, founder of Daryl Willcox Publishing said:

“The number of companies participating in social media on a daily basis shows the growing importance of this marketing channel.”

Nicola Clark, features editor at Marketing Magazine, positively explained that small businesses have the upper hand over their rivals when it comes to using social media.