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The Small Business Social Media Divide

Friday, October 16th, 2009

Small businesses on Referral Key fall into one of over 140 distinct industries. Being service professionals, we share an eagerness to network and exchange referrals. But outside of business networking and referral marketing, these small businesses are extremely diverse and can be grouped or divided according to many factors. One such factor is whether the day-to-day activities of the business occur in front of the computer or not.

Work and Pleasure

Marketing consultants, PR agents, graphic designers, programmers, etc. may spend the majority of their day browsing on a computer. For these professionals, leisure and work are often interspersed throughout the day. The line between using the web for fun and for work can be blurred too. It’s no wonder that these professionals are the strongest advocates of, and make up the majority of small business owners participating in blogs, Twitter, Facebook etc.

i.e. Jill is a freelance graphic designer, throughout the day she bounces back and forth between Photoshop and the net. (Twitter, her favorite blogs, Referral Key, message boards…)

Work then Pleasure

Landscapers, dentists, doctors, home inspectors, contractors, etc. are less likely to be in front of a computer; and if they are, they tend to be running specialized software. For these professionals there is a much clearer dichotomy between computing for work and computing for leisure.

i.e. Dave is a contractor. He has two Nextels and a calculator on him at all times. He carries his laptop in his truck but almost exclusively uses it to run his CAD software.

What Do You Think?

Do you believe think certain professions are more likely to be drawn to, or reap the benefits of new social technology?

If this is true, will there be a social media divide and what is the fallout?

Mobile apps may be a way to engage everybody but I wouldn’t count on them being a deal breaker. Most people don’t discover and become acclimated to tools via mobile, adoption usually happens the other way around. Mobile app users tend to be even further entrenched in a social media than their desktop-only counterparts.

Tags: business network, Business Networking, referral marketing
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The Referral Marketing Connector is the Middleman Everyone Loves

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

Connecting professionals within your business network is not only mentally rewarding but it can be financially rewarding. All too often we only consider the sales needs of ourselves and our immediate referral marketing circle. Creating synergy between other professionals is an important way to expand your network.

I bet you can think of at least half a dozen opportunities for collaboration between two parties that don’t directly know each other.

As you become more aware of your colleague’s needs, you’ll find the opportunity to connect professionals is overwhelming.

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Survey Finds Business to Business Marketing Moving to Social Media

Friday, August 14th, 2009

An article released by Mashable this afternoon notes a growing trend toward the use of social media amongst marketing professionals. A survey released by BtoB Magazine and The Association of National Advertisers indicates that marketers are increasingly using new media as apart of their marketing repertoire.

Not surprisingly, the amount of money marketers spend on social media is expected to continue to grow as well. The idea is not “if” but “when” will online business networking become a De facto practice amongst successful small business owners.

“That said, social media (including blogs) remains the quickest growing marketing segment, and as we recently reported, it’s expected to grow to a $3.1 billion industry by 2014. In all, it looks like social media marketing still has a healthy amount of growth in front of it.”

-Adam Ostrow, Mashable

Things to Consider

Although the findings are exciting for both small business marketers and us in the social media industry, like most surveys regarding social media, it leaves a few areas of warranted skepticism.

After a some digging I found that the survey consisted of 172 respondents and it is unclear what “using social media for marketing” specifically means. Does a marketer who has a Facebook page from which he occasionally sends business related media constitute as “social media marketing” Do business networking marketers count as marketing via social media? How much time is being spent using these particular tools?” What does social media spending refer to; the cost of having someone on these particular sites, advertising, or something else?

The survey was also conducted online, which may have some significant affect on the results.

We still encourage groups like B to B Magazine and The Association of National Advertisers to continue pioneering social media research. The more we know, the better we can leverage new technologies.

Tags: Business Networking
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Business Networking Organizations Are Like Snowflakes; No Two Are Identical

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

Whether you attend a formal meet up group or you have developed a referral network on your own terms, you have probably thought about how your network would compare to others.

If you ask anyone who’s been in multiple business networking organizations, they’ll likely tell you that not all business networks are equally effective at creating business opportunities for their members.

The dynamics of a networking group are as unique as the members they are composed of.

Consider these three factors:

Size

The optimal size of a referral network is a hotly debated subject. In our blog, What is the Ideal Size for Business Networking Clubs? we took a look at Dunbar’s number.

Professions

What type of professions make up your referral network? While there are no definitive rules, professionals tend to come across certain referrals more than others. An extreme example would be an electrician, carpenter, plumber, and a venture capitalist. The tradesmen may not be as likely to refer clients to the venture capitalist as they do each other. You can imagine that this system can become quite complex with a group of 50+ professionals.

Personality

How invested in the referral network are the members? Are all of the members highly motivated and serious about each others success? Or, do the members view the referral network as just one more way to try and promote their services?

No two networks are the same. Sometimes the best way to ensure top quality members is to create your own referral system. Get out there and spend some time networking. Let the cream rise to the top, hand-pick your referral partners, and invite them to join your own private referral network.

Tags: business networking organizations, Referral System
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