“10.6 % of sole proprietors” are outsourcing social media marketing according to the 2010 Social Media Marketing Annual Report. The study’s methodology can be criticized, 1356 responders as example of a whole economy is like looking at Mark Lemke’s 1991 World Series and concluding he would be a Hall of Fame second baseman.
I assume the 10.6% is made up of companies that use social media and disregards the larger market share: small businesses that do not use Twitter or Facebook at all.
Companies not using social media are muzzling themselves. They are handing money to competitors. They are not acting out of hubris or stupidity but fear. And these fears are reasonable for someone not familiar with what social media can do–but they’re akin to being afraid of electricity.
Late adopters choosing to light the house with oil lamps and candles can read The Atlantic at midnight, sure. Having electric light doesn’t mean you’ll stick a fork in the light socket yet companies not using social media think about Twitter this way, that it is evil. That partnering with customers using a free tool degrades their brand. That not learning how to communicate directly with customers is okay.
Twitter is not Darth Vader. Facebook is not The Force, either, but the following excuses companies use for not using social media are what consultants must deftly fight off.
1. Our company doesn’t need it.
2. I don’t have the time.
3. I don’t understand it.
4. I’ll get sucked into Twitter / Facebook and spend less time actually working.
From here I wonder what other excuses you’ve heard from friends, business owners, and colleagues for why social media is evil. I’ll argue against every excuse listed above in a future post–but what other reasons have you heard for why social media is ruinous?
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To quote Yoda:
“There is not ‘try’, do or do not.”
A yet-to-be published Tumblr post of mine discusses this fear. In short, the masses scoff at The New (computers, internet, email) but eventually will be assimilated.
True, we don’t know where Twitter is headed. Facebook may get MySpaced. But the key is that people are using these service. Potential customers are using these services.
To not be where your clients congregate is just like having a website that just forwards visitors to your competitors.
And that’s assuming they even *have* a website…
Comment by George Coghill — April 26, 2010 @ 2:11 PM
[...] Media: Valuable For Small Business At What Cost? | May 27, 2010 I write here about my belief businesses will increase outsourcing of social media marketing. Much of what [...]
Pingback by Social Media: Valuable For Small Business At What Cost? « Bryan_Gattozzi — May 27, 2010 @ 5:24 PM