Should my Small Business be on Social Media? - Internet Threats Blog

I recently read a good article from Mashable.com entitled ?5 signs Your Small Business Should Be on LinkedIn? and some very good points were stressed out that I would like to expand on. It is no secret that small businesses and start-ups have an uphill battle ahead of them in order to survive the first trying years. Having a small team and limited resources tends to put a strain on an otherwise smart strategy and many business owners are weary of even opening up a Facebook page given the many online risks they can encounter.

A recent poll done by AT&T revealed that 40% of companies admitted to having no training or governance of social media and still 60% of small businesses were planning on spending as much or more in 2012 as they did in 2011 on online marketing.

With all this information in front of you, it may be hard to decide whether or not to add a social media plan to your current strategy. Mashable?s article provides 5 signs why your small business should get on LinkedIn, I want to expand that and include other social media channels as well, hoping that this article will help you in making that decision.

1. You employ 1-50 People
   LinkedIn has been a huge success for small businesses, it allows you to pick one of two categories: 1-10 employees or 11-50 employees. The second category is where most businesses fall under. LinkedIn?s advanced search tool enables users to narrow results by keyword, location, industry, and company size.
   Social Media: Your size can become your strength. Large companies tend to outsource their social media strategy or create an in-house department and depending on the size of the enterprise it?s hard for them to keep track of all of their campaigns. But if your company is less than 50 people and you, as the owner or founder, have direct communication with all departments, size plays to your advantage.
2. You have something to say
   LinkedIn gives your company a voice, you can post updates on its behalf and share your content on the company page, which in turn can be seen by its followers. You also have the option of adding a widget that lives on your page that displays your updates and posts.
   Social Media: Company updates are possible on every major social platform. If you have something to say; something unique and valuable to your customers and followers, social media will really help you put the message out there, and if it really is valuable then your followers will do the free promotion for you.
   One of the risks of having a metaphorical cyber-microphone online is that anything you say can and will be used against you. Make sure you set up a proper reputation management plan before you engage in social media.
3. You?re hiring
   LinkedIn is a network for job seekers and professionals. If you don?t want to go through 1,000 applications and scan through countless of less-than-competent resumes, LinkedIn gives you a hand by categorizing and scoring each applicant based on your requirements and their skills.
   Social Media: Social Media has now become an agency?s favourite tool when it comes to filtering down candidates. Just a simple Google search can cut your candidates list by half, and a little bit more research can easily point out who the best fit candidate is. Surprisingly, a large number of social media users still have their profile security settings open, exposing their everyday activity for the world to see.
4. You need advice
   LinkedIn ?Answers? and Groups are a gold mine of information. You can ask and answer questions to support your professional endeavors. You can join groups that speak to your industry and see what others have been doing on LinkedIn to generate engagement.
   Social Media: The internet is our library ? countless amounts of information at our fingertips! You can easily find answers to help you develop and grow your business. There are online forums dedicated to small business owners and even online tutorials for every single thing imaginable.
   Search Engines are also the yellow pages of today and customers are searching for answers to their everyday problems, your business could be the solution they are looking for but you won?t be found if you?re not online.
5. You?re a Non-Profit
   LinkedIn lets you create a company page, a group or both on behalf of your charity or service organization. You can use this channel to generate and host richer discussion and engagement. Make sure that it is all being moderated and that the conversation is of value to your supporters.
   Social Media: If you?re a small or up-and-coming charity you need to be on social media, it exponentially leverages word-of-mouth. Online campaigns have proven a success to raise money for a cause ? it makes donating fun, easy to understand, easy to give and provides recognition for people?s generosity.

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Related posts:

1. Small Business Owners: take advantage of Facebook?s new features!
2. Online Reputation Management Tools for your Small Business
3. How Are Small Businesses Using Social Media?

Source: http://threatblog.org/social-media/social-media-monitoring/should-my-small-business-be-on-social-media/

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