How to promote your business to the whole planet for FREE
Did you know that there are FREE ways to promote your small business? Wait, you DIDN’T know that? Well you are not alone. A new small business survey by Citibank found this to be quite the norm among small businesses.
Few small business owners and managers are joining the consumer trend towards increasingly using social networking websites and services, according to a new Citibank / GfK Roper survey.
Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn…If you havn’t heard of these social media tools, then you REALLY net to get out more. Or get online more as it were. The buzz around social media is deafening, but a whopping 81 percent of respondents say they still haven’t tried it. Why not? Nearly half of respondents (47 percent) don’t believe that Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn are of value to their business, another 21 percent think the sites are for personal use, and 18 percent say they don’t know enough how to use the sites.
According to the survey of 500 small business executives across the United States, 76 percent have not found social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn to be helpful in generating business leads or for expanding their business during the last year, while 86 percent say they have not used social networking sites to get business advice or information.
The survey found that general search engine sites such as Google and Yahoo! trump small business-focused sites and the WSJ.com as destinations for small business owners to seek business advice or information. 61 percent of respondents say they rely on these search engine sites.
“Our survey suggests that small business owners are still feeling their way into social media, particularly when it comes to using these tools to grow their businesses,” said Maria Veltre, Executive Vice President of Citi’s Small Business Segment. “While social media can provide additional channels to network and help grow a business, many small businesses may not have the manpower or the time required take advantage of them.”
Other online tools that are going unused: Nearly 40 percent of small businesses surveyed don’t have a website, 62 percent don’t send marketing e-mails to promote their business, and 84 percent haven’t engaged in e-commerce. But among the companies that do have a website, 74 percent say it’s an effective way to bring in business.
What do you find to be the best online tool to promote your business?
