New research shows social media is the dominant marketing channel for small business for second consecutive year; Findings to be presented at BIA/Kelsey SMB, Sept. 29-30 in Denver.
For the second consecutive year, social media is the top marketing channel used by small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), according to BIA/Kelsey's Local Commerce Monitor, Wave 19 (LCM19). Among 1,000 SMBs surveyed, 73.2 percent say they use social media to promote their businesses.
"SMBs are becoming more sophisticated in how they integrate social into their marketing mix," said Steve Marshall, director of research, BIA/Kelsey. "The question is no longer 'should I be doing more social media?' It has now become, 'how does social media work together with my other media and my business model?'"
As social media has become its own ecosystem, LCM now measures usage of 12 different social media platforms, including three within Facebook and two within Twitter. Facebook pages continue to dominate as the most popular social channel used by SMBs. However newer social entrants are growing quickly, especially Pinterest and Instagram, which have each logged significant gains in adoption by SMBs in the past year.
Among SMBs surveyed:
- 57.4 percent use a Facebook page to promote their business, up from 53 percent in 2014
- 20.9 percent use Twitter (regular tweets or re-tweets), up from 18.3 percent in 2014
- 13.8 percent use Pinterest, up from 10.1 percent in 2014
- 11.5 percent use Instagram, up from 8.1 percent in 2014
LCM19 at BIA/Kelsey SMB – Free Report for Attendees
BIA/Kelsey analysts will present data from LCM19 to attendees of this month's BIA/Kelsey SMB conference (Sept. 29-30, Denver). LCM data will inform the conversation on nearly every topic covered at the event – from the use of cloud-based services to the debate over DIFM vs. DIY, to the importance of social, mobile and video for today's SMB marketers.
Conference attendees will receive a free copy of a brand new LCM19 report titled, "SMB Advertising Report: Planning and Budgeting for 2016." This report includes data and top-level recommendations for specific functional areas within SMB service provider organizations.
