Many small businesses are still hesitant to embrace social media citing the fact that they don’t really understand how social networking services can help increase their sales.
However, recent studies have been conducted and the results are expected to help small business owners to feel confident in using social media as a promotional tool.
The survey conducted by Constant Contact and Chadwick Martin Bailey in January 2011 polled 1,491 consumers aged 18 years and older.
In general, the consumers use Twitter more often than Facebook or other media. About 50% of Twitter users go online more than once per hour.
Twitter is fairly new to some consumers because half of them have been using Twitter for less than a year.
However, 21% of the consumers claimed to use Twitter to follow their favorite brands and products.
26% of users under 35 are following the most brands, compared to 17% of those age 35-49 and 13% of those age 50 and over.
According to the survey, if the business owners managed to grab the users’ attention, usually the users will be attentive to the brand for some time. Only 13% said they have unfollowed a brand after following it.
84% of respondents also said that they read the tweets coming from the brands they follow.
60% of them also say they are more likely to recommend the brand they follow to their friends, and half of them say they are more likely to purchase products from the brands after following.
Considering the above statistical results, it is time for business owners, both the successful and the startup, to take a glance and use social media to gain greater profits.
(via All Twitter)

(via All Twitter)