Silver Springs, MD—Webs, a subsidiary of Vistaprint N.V. and provider of marketing platforms for the small business, announced the results of the Webs Small Business Digital Usage Survey. The report highlights the role of digital in the marketing strategies of small businesses.
The national survey of 2,292 small business owners revealed that 63% are actively using digital products to market their businesses. Of those with websites, 59% created their websites using DIY tools, and 80% of website owners are their own webmasters.
Webs noted that 88% of small business owners with social business profiles list Facebook as their top social media channel for marketing, “making it by far the most widely adopted social network for connecting and nurturing customer relationships.”
“Small business owners are rapidly embracing digital DIY tools to build their online and social media presence,” said Scott Bowen, vice president and general manager of Webs. “The adoption rate of social media platforms among small businesses is accelerating as they look to create brand awareness and engagement with their customers quickly and cost effectively.”
The Small Business Goes Digital
According to the Webs survey, most small businesses have some digital component to their marketing strategy. “Whether it’s a website or solely a Facebook page, small business owners perceive that an online presence is critical to connecting with customers and marketing effectively,” added Bowen.
Some of the survey findings underscoring this are:
• 63% of small business owners use digital products as part or all of their marketing strategy, most combining digital and print.
• 61% use, or plan to use, a website, online store or mobile website.
• 59% of those with a website created it with DIY tools.
• 80% of website owners are their own webmasters.
• 43% of website owners picked a website domain name at or before the time they launched their businesses.
According to the research, the role of social media is increasing as small business owners look to easily create brand awareness and expand their reach in an effective but low-cost manner: 46% of small business owners have, or plan to create, a social profile for their business; 88% of those with social profiles list Facebook as a top social media channel for marketing their businesses, followed by LinkedIn (39%), Twitter (31%), Google+ (22%), Pinterest (20%) and YouTube (17%). And 65% of those with Facebook business profiles use or are considering using Facebook advertising.
Notes Webs: Most small business owners understand having an online presence is an important element for attracting new customers—63% agree the top motivator for getting a website is to generate new customer leads. Showcasing products and services is second (44%), and providing basic company information third (42%).
The top three reasons Facebook users reported for creating a business page were customer acquisition (62%), building a network of followers (50%) and increasing brand awareness (45%).
Webs Small Business Digital Usage Survey is based on a nationally representative sample of 2,292 small business owners of companies with fewer than 10 employees. The anonymous survey was conducted online by Insight By Design between March 10–15, 2014 as part of Vistaprint’s 2014 Digital Usage Study. The poll has a margin of error of approximately +/- 2-7% depending on the question. webs.com
