6 reasons why any business at any industry can use social media
This article will focus on reasons why any business at any industry at any economy/country can use social media. On the other words, I will explain how social media can work for any industry. Let’s check out the 6 reasons:
1. Massive social media users
This is almost self explanatory. With its 2.34 billion users, social media provides opportunity for business to target 30% of people on earth. And the number will only keep growing with estimated 2.95 billion people will be using social media in 2020. Channel with less than 100 million globally certainly will limit its use to certain business/industry, but not with social media with its massive global users.
2. Ability to reach to any consumers segments
And with its massive users, social media provide means for business to market to any consumers segments. As almost 80% of internet users are also social media users, any business at any industry can market to anyone, no matter what their nationality, language, religion, age, social status, job are. More importantly, since their own customers are most likely using social media too, business is able to market to their own customers, using social media.
We have examples from so called social media friendly industry (mostly B to C industry) such as local restaurants telling people living nearby about their new menu, universities informing young people across the country about their program, software companies marketing to avid computer users all over the world about their new product. We also have examples on how B to B industry utilize social media such as Linkedin to broad their network or to hunt for future employees. Even non-IT highly specialized industry who will not benefit much from linking to as many people as possible in social media, can utilize social media for promoting their CSR activity.
3. No minimum and maximum marketing budget
Social media is different from old media like TV and newspaper, since it has low entry barrier. Any business in the world can launch their social media with almost zero cost and can operate them with also relatively low running cost. Therefore, business using social media can have very low, even in extreme case, zero marketing budget to market their products.
On the other hand, as social media has no advertising slots, it also enables "unlimited" marketing budget. As long as a business a. can get positive margin (gain profit) from any marketing budget spent in social media, and b. have enough inventory and other resources (time, personnel etc.) to do so, the business can spend as much as they like, whenever they like it. So, social media works for both extremes: minimum/no marketing budget and huge/unlimited marketing budget.
4. Ability to start with minimum (digital) marketing knowledge
Social media not only gives business flexibility in term of budget, but also in term of marketing knowledge and know how. As a business can start small with budget, it can also start low in level of skill. As long as a business does not post anything controversial, failed small scaled social media marketing will not greatly affect a business financial condition. And with the birth of new social media platform every year, even business with minimum digital marketing knowledge has chance to be the market leader in that platform if they make an early entry.
With great emphasis in "social" aspect of social media, the number requirement for a business success in social media is not how big their budget, or how deep their knowledge is, but how authentic it interacts with the customers via social media.
5. Ability to start at any stage of your business cycle
Whether it is 100 years, 10 years, 1 year, 1 month, 1 day old, any business at any stage of their development can use social media for marketing and any other business purpose. Even unborn business can use social media to increase awareness of their brand ahead of the company/product launch, or even to accelerate the birth of the business itself through crowdfunding. Business who are bound to get bankrupt can also use social media. From one extreme like trying to save the business itself, to the modest use such announcing the gratitude to their loyal customer base.
6. Ability to start with minimum infrastructure/personnel
At minimum, a business will need internet access and internet ready devices, computer, smartphone, tablet to be able to use social media. But as most business do not open 24 hours, constant internet access is also not an absolute requirement for running social media for business. You can have internet access for certain hours in which you will operate your social media. Even a business do not need to own any devices as it can operate the social media with owners smartphone, or for extreme case, if nobody in business have any internet-able devices, it can use internet cafe or public library. For same logic, business with only 1 personnel, or even an owner doing part time business, do not need to dedicate large chunk of time to do the social media.
