If you are a small business owner and not already in the game with social media, in particular Facebook, or actively working towards engagement, there is no time like the present to take the plunge. Unless you are completely satisfied with the business you have, aren’t looking to grow and have proven ways to stay connected with your clients and attract new clients. Proven ways that encourage feedback, provide an opportunity for interaction and an easy way for people to share with others the information, helpful tips and great service and products you provide.
Even with Facebook this isn’t achieved over night. But the longer you wait to get involved the longer it will take you to build a network of people who connect with you through this social media giant and the longer it will take for you to figure out a rhythm of sharing and interaction that works best for your Facebook fans and your business.
Ultimately, when it comes to social media “it’s keeping up with your customers – not beating the competition” that is most important, according to Bryan Eisenberg. And while this is true, if your competition learns the ropes of social media before you do, and all other things are equal (products and services), then you are likely to be at a competitive advantage when it comes to your customers.
Many small businesses are not yet on the social media bandwagon – to their detriment. It’s often more about lack of time to pursue involvement and/or not realizing what a significant and cost effective tool social media, in particular Facebook, can be in building our business and reputation.
With more than 15 million monthly users and 9 million daily users in Canada, Facebook is the biggest player in the field.
And because most small businesses are not yet using Facebook Pages to promote their business, share information and build customer loyalty, now is the time to get on board, ahead of the curve.
Big business is already on board if night time television advertising is any indication. But you don’t have to be big business or have big dollars to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by a well executed strategy centered around Facebook.
“Social media has moved from being seen as a trend or fad, to becoming an instrumental channel for marketing, communications and sales.” notes Marketer Insight reporting on the 2011 Social Marketing Benchmark Report from MarketingSherpa.
Need more incentive to bite the bullet? 65.9 percent of our country’s online population uses Facebook which makes it one of the most significant demographic groups in the social network.