STUDY: This is the Most Influential Social Network for Small Business

A G/O Digital study surveyed more than 1,000 users and found that one social network is a driving force for small businesses. A whopping 73% of respondents said that the most important social media platform they expected to find local businesses on was Facebook, compared to Twitter (3%), LinkedIn (2%), and Instagram (less than 1%).

Other interesting findings from the G/O Digital study:

Discounts are a Big Deal

51% of respondents said discounts or incentives on Facebook are more likely to motivate them to click to websites or mobile sites. 54% said discounted offers were likely motivate them to call and/or book appointments.

Customers Appreciate Fast Responders

58% of respondents stated that they expected to receive a response within a day of contacting local business on Facebook and another 42% expect the same on Twitter.

Active Presence For the Win

19% of survey respondents want to see information from small businesses in their News Feeds at least once per week. 21% of respondents said they were “more likely to regular check out products, prices, and sales from the business – both online and in-store,” after interacting with Facebook Pages. And 68%of respondents have used social media to find information about local businesses in the last 12 months.

Certain Content Does Better

34% preferred to have Facebook ads targeted to them by interests, while only 13% chose location. The three types content that are most likely to drive Facebook users to stores according to those surveyed are promotions and coupons (60%), testimonials and success stories (13%) and photos and videos (6%).

Less is More

While it is vital for local businesses to have an active social media presence, less is more according to survey respondents. 80% of respondents overwhelmingly prefer and expect local businesses to have a presence on just 1-3 social media platforms.

Click here to take a look at the full G/O Digital study.