San Angelo Chamber of Commerce

418 W Ave B
San Angelo, TX 76903

April 23, 2017

Member name (ex. Dun-Bar Restaurant)

Members address
San Angelo, TX 76901

Subject: Social Media Marketing for Small Business

Dear (Members Name),

As a valued member of the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, you are receiving this
report to help you understand the importance of social media marketing for small
business. The chamber offers several amenities to members, and we feel it is our duty to
help you optimize your businesss reach. By utilizing social media such as Facebook,
Twitter, and Instagram you can reach customers instantly. However, the best part about
social media marketing is its price! You can advertise your business for free or for a
small fee. If you are interested in creating a social media account for your business or if
you want to up your social media game, see the attached report. The report contains
information on why social media marketing is important, strategies of successful small
businesses who use social media, how to choose the correct platform for your business,
and how to maintain your online presence.

Sincerely,

Victoria Nakamura
Communications Coordinator
San Angelo Chamber of Commerce
Social Media Marketing for
Small Business

by

Victoria Nakamura
Communications Coordinator

Submitted to

(Member Name)

San Angelo Chamber of Commerce

San Angelo, TX

April 16, 2017

Executive Summary

Research has shown that social media marketing is a valuable tool for small business.
Social media marketing is important because it allows customers to research businesses
before making a purchase. When consumers search for products, a social media page can
help a business stand out from the rest. If a business offers discounts and sales, puts forth
interesting content, and responds to customer reviews, a consumer will be drawn in. If a
consumer follows a business on social media, they are more likely to remain loyal to said
business. Advertising on social media is also the best option for businesses on a budget.
The return on investment for social media marketing is higher than all other forms of
traditional advertising. Page analytics are also available to business owners on Facebook,
Instagram, and Twitter for no cost. In order to stay current and to build a clientele, social
media is key.

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary..........i

Table of Contents.......ii

Introduction.......3

Why Social Media Marketing is Important..........3

Choosing the Right Platform .....4

Maintaining your Online Presence4-5

Recommendations...5-7

Conclusion.........7

Works Cited.........8-9

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Introduction

Social media marketing is a valuable tool for small businesses. Some of the benefits of
social media marketing include: advertising for free or at a low cost, controlling your
online presence, seeing what is being said about your business, and gaining new
customers. According to a report by Social Media Examiner, 92% of 3,700 small
business owners polled find value in social media marketing (Seltzner 7). Social media is
a tool to build and maintain customer loyalty, but to successfully market on social media
businesses must keep an up to date presence and post content that is on trend and
resonates with their target audience.

Why Social Media Marketing is Important

Having an active social media account is the best way to boost search engine
optimization. Today, people turn to the web when they are looking to buy a product.
Customers like reviews and they like being able to view details about a business before
they make the decision to invest their time and money. In order to stay relevant, small
businesses must either create a website or sign up for a social media account. Out of the
two, opening a social media account is the easier option. Another reason to create a social
media account, or to better run your current account, is your competitors. According to
Greenwood et al., 91% of brands use two or more social media platforms.

In addition to staying ahead of your competitors, social media offers a higher return on
investment in comparison to traditional forms of advertising. On average, the cost per
click on a Facebook advertisement is 19 cents, and the cost per mille (like, share, or
comment) is $3.99 per 1,000 (Facebook). In addition, Americans typically spend 37
minutes a day on social media and 46% of web users look to social media when making
purchases (Karr). Social media has the largest audience for the smallest budget. As
shown in Figure 1 below, average users spend 35 minutes on Facebook, 15 minutes on
Instagram, and 1 minute on Twitter daily (Asano).

Average Time Spent on Social Media Daily

40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Facebook Instagram Twitter

Time Spent on Platform in minutes

Figure 1: Average Time Spent on Social Media Daily

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Choosing the Right Platform
In order to optimize reach, businesses need to choose their social media platform wisely.
Businesses that are new to social media also need to consider only using one platform to
begin with. Content for Facebook is not the same as content for Instagram, or for Twitter.
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are the most popular social media platforms for
business, but unless a business has a social media specialist, they should start only one
account at a time. Facebook may seem like the most obvious choice due to the number of
users on the platform, but Instagram and Twitter also have their uses. Instagram is mainly
used for businesses that have interesting visual content to share, whereas Twitter can be
compared to blogging with blurbs. The number of users on each platform is also a factor
to consider. As show in Figure 2 below, Facebook has 1.86 billion active users
(Zephoria), Instagram has 600 million active users (Statista), and Twitter has 313 million
active users (Twitter).

Number of Active Users on Social Media

2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
Facebook Instagram Twitter

Number of Active Users in Billions

Figure 2: Number of Active Users on Social Media

Maintaining your Online Presence

In order to develop loyalties and drive more online traffic to a business page, a businesss
account must stay active. A large part of social media is interactivity. Businesses must
post content that generates interest and reply to their audience. According to the Social
Media Strategies Summit (SMSS) the top five reasons why people follow businesses on
social media are: promotions and discounts, to stay in the know, product assistance and
customer service, entertaining content, and ability to offer feedback. Business owners
need to consider the perspective of the user when coming up with content to post. To
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generate ideas, view similar businesses and what they are posting. In addition to
considering content, businesses have to interact with customers. By saying nothing,
businesses are still saying something. Replying to customers is a top priority because the
way someone is treated online is public. If a business does not reply it appears as if they
do not value their customers. Thus, implying in person customer service will also be
poor.

Recommendations
I recommend every business have an online presence. Social media is one of the easiest
options, but some business owners are not familiar with the business tactics of social
media. In addition, there are several factors to consider when making or improving a
business social media account. To make it easier, I have included ten easy steps on how
to run a business social media account.

1. Choose a platform

Facebook has the largest following and the most posting options. Twitter is a
good platform for short updates. Instagram is a good option for businesses that
have a lot of visuals to share, such as hairdressers or landscapers.

2. Define your target audience

Are you trying to expand your reach to larger cities or are you wanting to stay
local? However, be realistic about your services and if people will travel for them.

3. Set goals

Once you know which platform you will use and your target audience, you need
to set goals. What are you trying to accomplish with your business page? Are you
looking to increase sales at a certain time? Are you trying to build a clientele?
Once you have a goal you can tailor your social media activity to it.

4. Strategize

Once your goal is in place, think about ways of achieving. However, realize that
strategies change. You have to adjust your plan based on initial outcome. If you
post in the morning and you are not seeing results, try posting at other times of the
day. If you post about a sale and only a few people show up, try posting a coupon
and see if you result differs.

5. Make your page inviting

Facebook and Twitter provide spaces for a profile image, a cover photo, and a bio
section. Customize these sections to your business by featuring your staff, logo,

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 your location, or a combination of the three. People want to know who they are
investing their time and money in.
6. Post often

In order for social media marketing to work, you have to post often. Your posts
also need to align with the wants of your audience. Plus, if you discover an
optimal time for audience engagement, but you know you will be too busy to post
at that time you can schedule your posts.

7. Respond to customers

If you receive a comment on a post, a review, or a tag, you need to acknowledge

your customer. Respond to both negative and positive posts. However, if the
comment needs to be handled privately, give the customer your phone number or
email address.

8. Promote

Use your social media to cross promote. Promote your website, newsletter, events
you are attending or hosting, or even your other social media accounts. It is also
helpful to include a link to your businesss social media account when you send
out a newsletter or a promotional hand out. Including your Facebook, Instagram,
or Twitter handle on your business card is another way to drive traffic to your
account.

9. Invest

While social media is a free advertising option, in order to receive the maximum
benefits, you will need to invest some money. However, you do not need to invest
a lot. A twenty dollar promotion on Facebook can help you reach all of San
Angelo.

10. Invest wisely

However, if you are going to spend money on promoting, you need to choose the
best option. On Facebook you can boost, promote, or make a campaign. Instagram
provides choices based on promoted content, such as photo or video. Research
which option you think will give you the most return on your money.

While following these ten steps will help you become more affluent with social media
and its function for business, you will still need to keep up to date with current social
media trends. The key to social media is change. If you feel like your social media plan is
not working, adjust it. In addition, because San Angelo is a smaller city, you will need to
adjust your posting tactics. Read your audience and who they are. If you feel like you are
not connecting to your audience, check out the San Angelo Community Profile on the
San Angelo Chamber website (sanangelo.org). The profile includes statistics on San
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Angelos economy, social scene, business leaders, job trends, and more. However, do not
become discouraged if it takes you a while to build a social media following. Gaining a
following takes time and buzz. You can create buzz by posting on San Angelo group
pages or by offering a coupon on your account.

Conclusion

In order to succeed in this technological age, businesses need some form of online
presence. Social media is the cheapest and easiest way small businesses can promote their
message and product. Customers tend to consult social media before they make
purchases. Maintaining an active social media account can separate you from the
competition. In addition, staying interactive with customers is valuable when it comes to
customer loyalty. Social media is a way to capitalize on customer interactions. For more
information on how to create a social media account and for tips on growing your
audience, contact me at communications@sanangelo.org.

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 Works Cited

Asano, Evan. How Much Time Do People Spend on Social Media?, Social Media

Today, http://www.socialmediatoday.com/marketing/how-much-time-do-people-

spend-social-media-infographic. Accessed 19 April 2017.

Company. Twitter, 12 April 2017, https://about.twitter.com/company.

Facebook Business. Facebook, 11 April 2017,

https://www.facebook.com/business/overview.

Greenwood, Susan, et al. Social Media Update 2016, Pew Research Center,

http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/11/11/social-media-update-2016/. Accessed 15

April 2017.

Karr, Douglas. 2014 Statistics and Trends for Businesses on Social Media. MarTech,

https://martech.zone/2014-statistics-trends-businesses-social-media/. Accessed 11

April 2017.

Number of monthly active Instagram users from January 2013 to December 2016 (in

millions). Statista, 17 April 2017,

https://www.statista.com/statistics/253577/number-of-monthly-active-instagram-

users/.

Seltzner, Michael. 2015 Social Media Marketing Industry Report: How Marketers Are

Using Social Media to Grow their Businesses, Social Media Examiner,

https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/SocialMediaMarketingIndustryReport201

5.pdf. Accessed 17 April 2017.

SMSS, Top 5 Reasons People Follow a Brand on Social Media, SMSS, 14 April 2017,

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http://socialmediastrategiessummit.com/blog/top-5-reasons-people-follow-brand-social-

media/.

The Top 20 Valuable Facebook Statistics Updated April 2017. Zephoria, 20 April

2017, https://zephoria.com/top-15-valuable-facebook-statistics/.