What is the Impact of Social Media for Small and Local Business
Like many people today, I woke up to the news that Osama Bin Laden had been killed by American Forces. Actually my wife, who had been listening to BBC’s Radio 4 on the Internet, told me. Old tech meets new!
When I fired up the computer to find out more, it was apparent that social media most notabilby Twitter was at the heart of the story.
The White House, late Sunday evening local time, tweeted a quote from President Obama that Osama Bin Laden was dead.
At least, one individual living close to the scene of the action actually tweeted, whilst it was going on.
A Google Places flag has been posted at the approximate location, though I would not wish to comment on the quality of the reviews.
I have mention before that FTSE businesses don’t get social media, but what are the implications for small and local business especially here in Normandy?
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Twitter is going main stream; if someone in a Abbottabad is tweeting live during the military operation, then we in Normandy need to wake up to Twitters reach and impact.
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High impact events such as this are going to drive people to use social media outlets like Twitter in their day-to-day activities.
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Use social media to drive news about your local business, the world is watching.
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Social media can help you to understand what is happening now in your locale, and use that to drive business in your direction.
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Gain competitive intelligence on competitors activities.
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Reach out to other businesses to establish mutually beneficial relationships.
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Engage with customers quickly and openly.
Eric Hewett 