Recently, I spent time explaining Facebook and Twitter to a friend: what they were, how they worked and their differences.
The main reason for his interest was that ‘lots of companies seem to be on there and I’d like to be part of it.’
It’s an increasingly popular view for baby boomers. The uptake of social media sites (in particular, Facebook and Twitter) is most prevalent among those in the 50 to 65 age range. This age group wants to connect and reconnect with friends as well as interact with service providers and companies.
It wasn’t long ago that we didn’t want to interact with companies. Remember when you had to contact your phone service provider and stay on the phone listening to high-volume, crackly, recorded music? Times are changing and now the consumer-base wants to willingly interact with businesses. They search for products online, compare prices, write and reviews and share experiences. In short, they want to interact on their terms in their own time and space.
Many businesses are adapting their services to accommodate changing customer attitudes. Communication with your potential customers and clients is no longer a one way street and discerning consumers are increasingly assessing a business through their online presence.
The changing approach to consumption got me thinking about recent news of the decline in retail spending, as shoppers go online to find bargains. Yet, some reports reveal that many small and medium businesses do not have a Web presence.
Why are independent professionals and small businesses resisting a technology which can help them communicate with more potential clients and customers, and trade outside normal hours? Despite the apparent desire for shoppers to buy online from overseas companies, local businesses with a strong Web presence have shown consumers are happy to buy local.
The idea of a Web site may be daunting to a busy small business who has never encountered a need for an online presence. It’s enough just to do your work, never mind finding something to promote, tweet and like everyday.
To often, social media is misconceived as a ‘personal’ activity. Facebook is just for young people who organize parties and Twitter is where people talk about what they’re eating for lunch. When the value of social media and Web presence is misunderstood and undervalued, independent professionals, small businesses and nonprofit organizations are at risk of limiting their potential “client, customer and contributor” reach and engagement.
If there is already business coming in the door, there seems little point investing in an additional activity. Some industries may not be as well served by social media as others. The technology startup may find an online network more useful than the physical therapist. Why would a small catering business need a Facebook page when they already have an established customer base?
However, if more and more of your customer base is joining Facebook, sharing their experiences and liking pages, how can they tell their friends about your business if there’s no page to ‘like’ and no Web site link to share.
An online or social media presence alone will not improve your business or customer engagement. A static Web page will hinder more than help your business. It’s not enough to throw up a page and leave it to gather Internet dust.
The right networking platform and Internet presence is different between small businesses and from larger corporations. What may be required is to provide more resources and assistance on how to build an informative and effective online presence.