Using Social Media for Business

Picking just one article (and a credible one at that...) was a difficult task for this entry, there were many amusing and informative ones to select from, but I ended up selecting a report on social media completed by the Yellow Pages in June of 2012. Seeing as though the report is almost one year old I’m sure there are many updates, but it was bright and colourful and detailed, and it’s the one I chose!  :)

It begins by discussing how much people actually use social media in all its variants, and what generally for, how long for, and where we are when we use it! Yellow goes on to discuss that people create “aliases” for their pets, children, sporting teams, and stuffed toys (Yellow 2012). We also use our “aliases” while running our online businesses, and to network with others. The uses of social media span impressively over connecting with friends, family and associates across the world, to our drive for consumption – searching and researching for things we want to buy and try, looking for coupons discounts and reviews.

In a survey comprising 1,951 Australian businesses and 1,016 Australian consumers, Sensis and the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association determined some facts around the use of social media.

Online Australians using social media	62%
Small businesses using social media	27%
Medium sized businesses using social media	34%

The results of the survey were to help determine the most productive uses of social media, including how to interconnect with the users of the “maturing social media market” (Yellow 2012).

At the time of Yellows report (12 months ago), some examples of use are as follows;

Facebook dominated	97%
Linkedin grew..	9% - 16% in one year
And Twitter	8% - 14%

Yellows report goes on to discuss that the growing number of people using social media creates favourable circumstances for business owners, but states that consumers and their interactions should also be respected.

While one in five people use social media for commercial reasons, and one in four pay attention!
I can personally vouch for this, I ignore the Facebook ads on my pc browser, and when I am using my android application I hide them.

Further statistics in the report indicate use:

Use social media for researching products	16%
Products researched on social media were purchased	40%
Researched and purchased the product online	72%
Sizable portion of products researched on social media were purchased offline, in-store	n/a!?

These figures indicate the positive impact that social media has for both consumers and producers alike, because it creates an ease of access for both parties.

Some slightly more negative figures displayed that many larger corporations spent more time and money trying to keep their social media up to date, and trying to direct people to their pages. Results showed a lack for smaller businesses also, attracting people to their pages.

In conclusion, Yellow’s report labels social media as ‘pervasive’, and I agree. There is no escaping advertising in your news feed, even when the ads are offencive (some bulimic, spray tanned bikini clad twit selling fitness tips), you can try and report them but they just keep coming. It is an important aspect of business for the producer of goods and or services to understand and to utilise in the most efficient way possible.

“Despite the lack of strategic direction behind many businesses’ social media presence, it remains a key area of growth” (Yellow 2012)

Reference:

http://about.sensis.com.au/IgnitionSuite/uploads/docs/FinalYellow_SocialMediaReport_digital_screen.pdf accessed 23 May 2013