Social Media Marketing The Big Business Equalizer

Social media marketing has become an important business equalizer, in the sense that the David-and-Goliath equation that exists between small-sized businesses and big corporations, in the traditional business landscape, is not so visible in the realms of social media. Upstart businesses can launch their social media marketing campaigns with as little risk as possible but with a lot to gain. And corporate giants do not hold dominance in social media marketing, unlike in traditional marketing where only a few can afford existing advertising channels.

As a business equalizer, what are the nuances and characteristics of social media marketing that makes it possible for any types of business to venture successfully in the social media world? Here are a few:

1. Open to anyone

As long as small businesses have a clear marketing strategy, they can launch their social media marketing campaign easily. Small entrepreneurs and even single proprietors need only a Facebook, Twitter, or MySpace account to start growing their market base in the world of social media. Social media platforms make it easy to join and setup a professional profile, and even have tons of helpful procedures online to guide beginners.

2. Size is not an issue

Big or small, businesses begin faceless in the social media marketing world, until they begin posting and taking on a social media persona that is often not influenced by their corporate images or, in the case of upstart businesses, non-images. A large company, for example, may be visible everyday with their costly TV ads and billboards, but unless they devise a social media marketing campaign that is right on pulse with social media users, their business reputation can only sustain them up to a certain point. Beyond this point, any new cafe in the corner with a website and a captivating Twitter presence has a better chance of racking up sales.

3. Social talk is cheap

Hiring a battalion of social media workers will not even guarantee that big businesses get an edge over small businesses with only one or two SEO specialists on board. The key is the quality of social media marketing communications coming out of the business and into customers. Providing the right environment for conversations, or building an online community of customers, can be pulled off by even a small business, as long as the right social media goals propel them forward.

4. Relationships are honest

Engaging Twitter followers or Facebook fans into a higher level of relationship is not monopolized by big companies alone. The only criterion that matters is how sincere businesses are in holding a captive and loyal audience. Social media marketing is not about how many followers or friends businesses can generate per month, but how many actually appreciates their online presence and looks forward to the next posts, and of course, eventually how many of these translate into sales.

5. Content, not hype, is King

Creating content that is valuable to customers is one leveler of the social media marketing game. It can only be a couple of posts a week, but when full of content and information, these posts are more effective as a social media marketing campaign than one involving a deluge of posts that annoy users and do not give customers a reason to visit the business website. Meaningful content can engage customers to visit the site or buy a product.

Article Source: http://www.wahm-articles.com

Debbie Everson is the CEO of SearchMar.com, the leading provider of search engine optimization, social media & online marketing solutions to over 2,000 small businesses. Read my SEO Blog. Follow me on Twitter or call 866-885-6263 for a free consultation.

Print This Article Comment on Article Email to Friends Ezine Ready

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated