Of the one million people who go online every day, social media continues to be a dominant focus. In fact, 45% of the world—roughly 3.5 billion people annually—are logging in to their preferred social platforms.
Small Business Trends spoke with Greg Perotto, VP of Global Marketing at Hootsuite, regarding the findings of the Digital Trends 2019 Report.
When you consider that the average person spends at least 2 hours and 16 minutes a day on social media (1/7 of their waking lives), then you can understand that if a business isn’t on social media and messaging, they’re not where their customers are.
“I think the most important things the average business owner can take from Digital [Trends] 2019, is to understand the absolute importance of social media and messaging apps as a way to engage with customers — after all, both are how customers want to engage with brands as social media has taken on greater prominence in the customer journey, from awareness to advocacy, and messaging increasingly is how people want to connect with brands, ask questions and get support.”
~ Greg Perotto via Small Business Trends
The Most Active Social Channel Is YouTube
The Digital Trends 2019 Report revealed the continued demand for video content, stating that YouTube is the most active social platform in the US. Not surprisingly, the way in which videos are being consumed is also changing, with 75% of people watching video content on mobile devices.
Needless to say, creating engaging, promotional content for YouTube is a can’t-miss way for small businesses to reach the millions of people accessing YouTube daily for information and entertainment.
YouTube can also be used for advertising and engagement to drive customers to company websites and since any business can create a YouTube channel, the video platform offers an easy way to connect to and engage with the desired audiences.
“YouTube can bring a product or service alive for customers, in unique and compelling ways, and the cost of entry is extremely low. Every day YouTubers generate billions of views, as people watch millions of hours of content.”
~ Greg Perotto via Small Business Trends
Small business should be aware, however, that creating and maintaining a YouTube channel is more labor intensive than setting up an Instagram or Facebook profile. It will require the necessary resources and bandwidth to consistently deliver engaging content for their audiences.
Most Internet Users Use Mobile Messaging
Another key point from the Digital Trends 2019 Report that small businesses should be aware of is that 70% of internet users are using mobile messaging.
“The top 4 messaging apps globally now count nearly 5 billion monthly active users, and the majority of customers now want to speak with a business directly through messaging. Ultimately it makes them feel more confident about a brand.”
~Greg Perotto, VP of Global Marketing at Hootsuite via Small Business Trends
Perotto goes on to say:
“It is truly how people — customers — now communicate. A small business can easily capitalize on this reality by setting up relatively inexpensive messaging-bot programs or in-app assistants to handle frequently asked questions, confirm services or sales, and run campaigns. This automation frees up your limited human resources to handle higher value and more complex customer interactions. And you don’t have to be a big business to implement this, my hair salon uses messaging, as does my real estate agent, doctor and contractor.”
~ Small Business Trends
As you can see, instant messaging is becoming an increasingly effective way for companies to build strong connections, drum up quality leads and grow their business.
Conclusion
With millions of new people going online, as well as 45% of the world logging on to their favorite social platforms, all businesses, small and large, need to seriously think about the methods their using to engage them.
“If you’re not engaging with your customers, when they want and where they are—meaning on social and via messaging apps — you run a huge risk of being left behind,” observed Greg Perotto.
