As online social networking giants Facebook and Twitter continue to grow in popularity, more small-business owners are trying to take advantage of available free and low-cost marketing opportunities to grow their revenues. Few, however, have been satisfied with the fruits of their labors.
Three-quarters of small businesses say they have not found sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn helpful for generating business leads or expanding business in the past year, according to Citibank’s August survey of 500 U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees.
The survey also found that 86 percent have not used social networking sites for information or business advice, and of companies polled, 10 percent have sought business advice and information on expert blogs.
According to Sarah Evans, owner of Sevans Strategy LLC, a Chicago-area public relations consulting firm, the key is for entrepreneurs to attract friends and followers in light-handed ways, and not to seek an immediate payoff.
“They get it when they learn that they don’t want to sell right away,” said Evans, who moderates a weekly industry live chat between PR professionals, journalists and bloggers on Twitter, where she has more than 54,000 followers. “Businesses these days need to engage and interact with their audiences if they expect them to be receptive.”
Evans had been scheduled to host a seminar in Springfield on Dec. 9, but the event was postponed until Feb. 8.
About 130 people attended Online Edge, an online marketing seminar, presented Dec. 7 at the Executive Conference Center, 910 W. Battlefield Road.
Local Marketing Giant LLC hosted the event that featured Russell Brunson, president of Dotcomsecrets.com, a Web company that Brunson says now generates $10 million in annual revenues.
Brunson offered some advice that seemed to go against Evans’ low-key approach. He told the crowd it was important that companies not be shy about marketing themselves.
“Sometimes people try so hard not to be that guy who’s in other people’s faces, that they can let their business fail,” he said.
Eric and Victoria Wells, owners of Ozark remodeling company Wells Works Construction LLC, said they attended Brunson’s conference to learn how to better use social networking platforms to generate business.
“We have a (Facebook page), but we don’t know how to use it,” Victoria Wells said, noting discouragement with the company’s 20 percent dip in 2010 revenues.
After the seminar, she and her husband were armed with the idea to consistently promote remodeling specials across multiple social media platforms.
Andy’s Frozen Custard is one Springfield company that has won a large audience and client base online. The company has collected 30,581 “likes” on its Facebook page, as of Dec. 9, and offers users Facebook-only coupons.
“On Cyber Monday, we offered a promotion that gave a free treat to anyone who purchased a gift card worth $20 or more online. That went really well,” said Kate Bauer, an administrative assistant who manages posts on the company’s Facebook page.
She said Andy’s received 15 online gift card orders on Cyber Monday, the only day the deal was available.
Bauer said the company also has been pleased with its Yum Squad program, which is promoted on Facebook. She said the program offers free treats to people who sign up and sends participants e-mail blasts.
Rick McElvaine, co-owner of Maxon’s Diamond Merchants, 2622 S. Glenstone Ave., uses the company Facebook page to promote special offers or share stories – without names or other identifiers – that customers have shared about their engagements or anniversaries.
“It’s something we can use to reach people on a more personal level,” McElvaine said. He said his business uses the site to connect with customers and promote its name, so that when people decide to buy, they think of Maxon’s before they think of an impersonal national retailer.
“People know us, they are often our friends and we know them by name. We see this as an extension of the way we’ve always done business,” he said.
Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.com, a professional networking site, are the most common online platforms used by small businesses to generate revenue, according to Evans. Others include Foursquare and Gowalla, which are location-based social-networking applications.
Wells said it was time for many companies like hers to take advantage of the various networking opportunities available online.
“Our world is moving in that direction, and we need to jump on board,” Wells said. [[In-content Ad]]
