How often do we hear, “follow us on Twitter”, or “become a fan of us on Facebook” at the end of television commercials or radio advertisements?  Every website we visit, every blog we read, and even when we shop online, we see the infamous Twitter or Facebook logo.  Social media has become such a huge part of our daily lives on a personal level and is now reaching the marketing and business world exponentially.  Typically we see larger companies, such as Dell or Starbucks publicizing their social media presence, but can social media work for the small business that you have built in your community?

Your small business is very much a reflection of your community.  It is usually formed by a person or group of people who are passionate about something and typically grows via honest business practices and word of mouth.  Social media is very similar in this respect in that it is all about creating a relationship and sharing ideas within a community with similar interests and needs.  Like any business and marketing venture, success doesn’t happen overnight with a social media campaign.  It comes with finding your target audience, talking to them, and most importantly, listening to what they have to say about your brand and what they need.

The social media world can seem pretty overwhelming and time consuming for the average business person.  With Facebook boasting more than 400 million active users, more than 1.5 million business fan pages, and more than 20 million people becoming fans of these pages each day, it is easy to see why a business owner might be overwhelmed when faced with the idea of entering the social media world.  But, it is increasingly difficult to ignore the overwhelming statistics that the social media revolution boasts.

There are over 2 million blogs in the blogosphere, and 78% of consumers trust peer recommendations from blogs and online forums, which illustrates that people are making purchasing decisions based on user-generated content and reviews.  What is the buzz about your brand?  Are people talking positively or expressing dissatisfaction with your services and products?  Either way, it is clear that the way to find out is by joining the conversation and engaging with your customers through intentional, consistent, and creative use of social media.

*Statistics courtesy of Facebook and Socialnomics.net.