Small Business Blog

Welcome to part two of our social media demographic study. In part one we examined the role gender plays in your online networking efforts. (To Read Part One Click Here:  Social Media Demographics)

Today we’d like to take a look at the various roles your prospects, colleagues, and friends play within an online networking environment. I recently reread “Groundswell - Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies” by Forrester Research. It’s an excellent read and if you’re interested in learning more click here.

The question I want to answer is, “What role do your connections fulfill within your small business network and how can you apply that to business lead generation?”

Groundswell identifies six profiles to consider when interacting with your network.

Creators
Are online consumers who contribute new content at least once a month i.e. blogs, videos, audio, wikis

Critics
Primarily interact with online content i.e. blog comments, forums, reviews

Collectors
Organize and aggregate online information i.e. RSS feeds, photo tagging, ratings

Joiners
Participate or maintain profiles on networking sites i.e. Twitter, MySpace, Facebook

Spectators
Are the consumers of online media. They strictly watch, read and listen to others content.

Inactives
Are people who are online but not participating in any new media

Below is a chart showing how the online world, as a whole, falls into these categories.
*Percentages add up to more than 100% because groups overlap

What This Means For Your Small Business

Whether you’re looking to generate sales leads or simply improve your word of mouth promotions, it’s important that you understand how your prospects are engaging the internet.

Here is just one example of putting this information to good use:

Let’s say you are a web designer who helps small businesses develop their websites. There is a good chance that the majority of your prospects do not fall into the “Creator” category. As a web designer you may enjoy technical Wiki’s and making connections on cutting-edge online social tools but you aren’t likely to find many prospects on those mediums.

Your prosepcts are interested in a website so it is likely that, at the very least, they see the value in an online presence. Therefore, the majority of them are probably “Spectators”. Producing content on sites like YouTube, Flikr, or even online trade publications will allow you to better connect with people seeking your services.

What profile do your prospective clients fall into?

Are you using the right mediums to reach them?