Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Local Businesses Embrace Social Media

One of the biggest problems we're seeing is businesses don't know how to effectively use Social Media to their benefit, nor select the most appropriate channels either. Strategy is key with an effective means to apply and evaluate. B2B or B2C?


Per a recent trade publication: 
Facebook is the most popular marketing tool for businesses working to promote themselves locally, new research finds that 70% of local businesses use Facebook to reach customers, up from 50% last year. Twitter saw a more modest uptick, with 40% of respondents using it, compared to 32% last year. But while Facebook is the most popular, only 37% of the 8,500 small-business owners surveyed consider it their most effective tool. Google search marketing takes that distinction, with 40% putting it at the top in terms of efficiency. 
And...the cost-effectiveness of social media has made it an attractive option, as there has been a drop-off in more traditional marketing, such as the Yellow Pages or direct mail.
However I can attest that a direct mail piece targeted to "AVIDS" was not only highly effective and way beyond normal opening rates that it was responsible a high increase in phone call traffic which tied into analytics showed how effective the campaign could be... its still in the top promotions for this local Air Conditioning Distributor client. And Yes we have the data and testimonial (not pie-in-the-sky!). Its now in year two with its proven ROI