Social Media for Small Enterprise

It’s frustrating I know. Frustrating for the web designer, marketing consultant, business owner and clients/users – not necessarily in that order. For any enterprise and organization getting online marketing right can be the key to customer retention; get it wrong and your image and credibility can be seriously hurt.

This is especially true for small business owners. They work hard at providing a great product, service or retail experience, and, at the same time, must constantly work at marketing: widening

the client base, and retaining current customers. Locally oriented SME’s (small to medium enterprises) start with marketing goals and mediums – like regular print advertising and coupons and a general website. Many then make the mistake of letting much of the online marketing go stale and static – and jump on the latest online trend only when the competition gets ahead. A business sign may last many years before needing touch up or replacement, a well designed static website might need updating a few times a year, but social media marketing needs continual input.

Before you jump on the social media marketing band wagon, ensure you understand the process, the social media tools and platforms, and how it can be used to promote a business, and gain insight to customer satisfaction.

What is Social Media?

Basic answer – Online tools and platforms to provide active, new content to interested end users, the means for them to easily respond and engage, and to share that content. It’s a feed back loop. Done well it keeps the receivers of the content interested in what you do.

What Social Media Tools should be used?

Everyone talks about Facebook and Twitter – but they are not likely to succeed unless you have relevant content available, and a user base to message. Get a Blog. That is the

first step. Good blog content should be the focus of how you market online – it provides a multifaceted social media platform, and should be used to help provide content to your eventual enterprise Facebook and Twitter accounts. Of course, every relevant Social and Media Networks should be used, but the base is WELL THOUGHT CONTENT.

A Userbase?

How do you collect potential blog readers, Twitter followers and Facebook Fans? Start with Email. Collect emails from your clients, put an email sign up form on your website. Email newsletters have been largely forgotten in the race to Social Media Platforms, but they are the ultimate user base and can engage and inform.

Online and Real Life

Make all your marketing consistent and timely. Running a newspaper promotion? Make sure your website, blog, Facebook account and Twitter feed all offer the same information at the same time. Too many businesses who traditionally rely on print adverts forget to update their website during sales.

Look at your print marketing. Do your brochures, posters, print adverts and business cards have your web address, contact email…even your blog url listed?

The Garden Analogy

Having used the idea of how a garden is planned, grows, needs sustenance, and weeding in terms of a website, it is even more appropriate for using Social Media to promote a business. David Armano’s blog in harvardbusiness.org sums it up nicely (and thanks to Yule Heibel for passing the article along on Facebook)…(that is a classic example of how Social Networking should be ulitized – links back to ideas that reinforce content, and acknowledgement to the providers)

The economics of using social media in business require the participation of people to fuel it. It is not simply enabled by technology that maintains itself. One of the biggest lessons to be taken away from a social platform such as Twitter is that the ecosystem it’s a part of if, is itself built on people who keep it humming along with not only content, but a seemingly endless stream of third party applications. This phenomenon is not entirely new–it’s been referred to as end-user innovation (innovation by consumers and end users, rather than suppliers).

There are a few considerations every organization needs to consider when developing their blueprints for their own unique social media design. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, there are few things you can plan for as you review the many options before you.

David Armano continues with a Seed, Feed and Weed analogy – more in terms of developing new social network platforms – but the terms are appropriate for small business. These are my own re-writes.

Seed – It takes people to make a Social Marketing Network grow. On two sides – one for readership, another for content. Use email sign up lists to create your initial base, and how about printed cards to your clients, with a coupon attached – join and get an offer? What content are you offering – is it a blog post? Once a day might be too much, once a year far too little. When you receive a comment on a blog, Facebook or Twitter post, respond, don’t leave it to whither and die. If you receive a positive testimonial why not ask if it can be used, and maybe even get that person to write an article for your blog, and share with their online and offline friends.

Feed – a blog that just sits there, with no updated content, is useless. A Facebook group or business page will not gain any fan base if it is not constantly fed. Same as a garden – feed and water the plants occasionally and they will survive. Feed and water at the right time, and with the perfect ‘food’, the garden bursts into glory. If you are determined to make Online Social Media market your business, it takes time, people and ideas. There is no one solution for all – it depends on your enterprise, user base and goals.

Weed – Learn from the process. Social Media is about interaction – you post, people respond. Those comments can be supportive testimonials, and criticisms. You can learn as much about how your business is perceived by each, and use that immediate feedback to improve.

Online marketing requires commitment and time. Before venturing into social media marketing platforms plan it out: understand your goals and the time commitment.

A Quote from David Armano

It’s worth noting that seeding, feeding, and weeding all take place after any social initiative has been launched. But not taking into account the manpower that’s involved in these as you develop your social business design strategy can lead to a lack of adoption or participation–essential elements to any social initiative. Ignoring these realities will continue to propagate the myth that social media is fast, cheap and easy. As organizations look to grow or scale their current initiatives, it’s proving to be anything but.

My disagreement with the above is in the preparation. If an enterprise enters Social Media Marketing with eyes wide open, with a prepared plan, an already set email user base, and time commitment to the process it will be a success – if not, enter at your own risk.

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