Back in August, i reported that some study’s conclusions were that small businesses aren’t adopting the social media as an effective necessary marketing tool. However, in a recent other study the picture is completely different where the big majority of small businesses are using the different social media marketing channels.

The new study, conducted by Constant Contact, surveyed close to 2,000 small business owners and their employees in October 2011. 87% of the small businesses are US-based, 81% have up to 25 employees and almost all of them (95%) are Constant Contact clients.

More Small Businesses Adopting Social Media Marketing
81% of all small businesses surveyed are engaging with social media marketing. This is a significant rise compared to another study by the company back in May where 73% of small businesses were engaging with social media marketing, representing about 11% rise in just 6 months.

Reasons Using Social Media Marketing
When the participants asked why they use the social media for marketing 83% answered that it is because its free or low cost (Compared to 72% in May Study), 67% answered it is because of its easy usability (Compared to 54% in May Study) and 65% said it is completing their other marketing channels.

Facebook Most Popular and Most Effective
Out of the small businesses who are engaging with social media marketing, 96% are using Facebook (86% of those found it as effective marketing tool), 76% are using Twitter (60% of those found it effective), about 60% are using LinkedIn (55% of those found it effective) and a little more than 50% are using video sharing (71% of those found it effective).

High Small Businesses-Customers Engagement In The Social Media
60% of the small businesses have answered that they are responding all the time to social media comments, whether if they are positive or negative. Additionally, 24% answered they are responding occasionally and only 16% answered they aren’t responding at all.

Conclusions

It seems that small businesses understand the significance of social media marketing effectiveness and the fact it is a powerful tool to connect with customers (even when they post negative comments). The high adoption of the social media in more than 4 out of 5 small businesses demonstrates how deep the social media has penetrated to the business world.

While Facebook is the most effective marketing channel and Twitter is slowly rising, video sharing also proved to be relatively popular and highly effective.