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SMEs leading the way with social media marketing

According to a survey we have conducted among small and medium businesses it seems that over half (54 per cent) use social media to promote their businesses and one-third (35 per cent) do so every day.

That seems pretty good and represents a doubling in social media activity among SMEs since our last survey last December.

I guess the data could be skewed a little as the survey was conducted online and perhaps people actively engaging in social media marketing would be more likely to complete it, but nevertheless the results are encouraging. The sample was 269 companies.

Given the size of the SME market in the UK (I think I estimated before around 2 million active companies) then that's a lot of people using their imagination to grow their businesses.

Take a look at the full survey results here.

Small business public relations resource launched

I've said before that the evolution of digital and social media is giving smaller businesses a great opportunity to market themselves effectively on relatively small budgets.

But it's challenging for small businesses to access the skills and experience required to execute online PR campaigns without the expense of using agencies. From writing press releases and distributing them online to understanding social media there is a lot for owner managers and marketing managers of small businesses to get their heads around.

So we're doing our bit and have put together a small business marketing resource. This provides links to relevant whitepapers, surveys, case studies and a brand-new podcast series. (See the press release.)

The first podcast, 'Marketing on a Shoestring - an Introduction', features my thoughts on how small businesses can make a start in raising their brand awareness and generating leads, primarily through digital marketing.

To PR agencies out there who percieve this as encouraging SMEs to do their own PR as an alternative to using an agency, I would say this: encouraging SMEs to experiment with PR is a good thing for the agency world as many SMEs who grow will inevitably see the hiring of an agency as a logical next step, and have a better understanding of what to expect from the relationship.

Small business marketing - PR becoming more relevant

A welcome symptom of the growth of digital media and the evolution of social media is that for the typical small business public relations (PR) is becoming much more relevant and potentially rewarding.

It wasn't that long ago that for many small business owners or managers PR was deemed expensive and of limited value. Hiring a specialist PR consultant to get you one or two bits of coverage in a local paper or trade rag seemed a gamble at best.

I's a different world now. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) - from startups to growth companies - can now do a lot more themselves. And regardless of whether or not they get those column inches in their local paper or trade magazine the online content created as part of even a limited PR campaign can be of real and sustained value.

There are plenty of guides to DIY PR around - not least my own whitepaper on how to write press releases. A bit of knowledge combined with online tools such as online press release wires and more generic social media sites gives small business much greater and enduring potential impact than that provided by a few lunches with the local business correspondent.

Issueing releases on a regular basis alongside a decent social media presence (things like a corporate blog, Facebook page, LinkedIn group and maybe a Twitter feed all linking back to a half decent company website) may not exactly be a sophisticated online PR campaign but it is certainly within the grasp of most owner managers or marketing managers within small businesses.

Instead of a backwater, I think many imaginative entrepreneurs will make small business public relations a sector of real innovation.