Choosing a place to eat, shop or even do laundry no longer involves looking in the Yellow Pages or cruising around searching for a likely place. The world of social media has encouraged consumers to rely on reviews and on-line relationships when choosing where to go.
With sites like Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, Urbanspoon, YouTube and Google+, business owners around the Queen Anne and Magnolia neighborhoods have discovered the benefits and downsides to using the expanding medium.
Joel Stedman, the owner of Magnolia Village Pub, said he has used Facebook and Twitter since 2010 for his business. He said he finds social media more noticeable than print advertising. With print media it is difficult to gauge what groups of people are keeping track of your business and the updates, he said, but social media lets owners see who responds to their updates.
“The vast majority of the 40 to 50-years-old and under crowd is checking social media daily,” Stedman said. “You don’t want someone else more on top of it than you, so I keep a close eye on our competitors and make sure our people are checking in.”
For the most part using social media is beneficial, said Courean Napolitano, owner of Vixen Day Spa and Boutique in Magnolia. Her business uses Facebook, but does not post very often. On one side she knows people are looking at her promotions like a free eyebrow wax, but sometimes she does not get any response, making the upkeep a necessary evil she doesn’t mind, she said.
However, Christopher Togawa, owner of Togawa Insurance Agency in Queen Anne, said despite missing out on the “conversation” or customer testimonials about his business, he does not like to use social media. He recently hired an employee to manage a Facebook page he started this month, but because he values the time spent getting to know customers in person, he does not want to use time keeping up an active online voice, he said.
Togawa prefers the community feeling and privacy that social media would take away, he said. His company still advertises using print media, and any updating or posting done online will help them find their place in the community, not promote business.
“We are driven by goodwill and karma,” Togawa said. “We want to send positive reminders over social media, not use it to promote ourselves.”
Considering an expert opinion, Blake Cahill, president of the social-marketing agency Banyan Branch, said, in the age of mobile technology and with an abundance of available information, consumers expect an on-line presence from product or service providers. Businesses do not need to include every social-media platform to market their product, but they should build a relationship with prospective customers on a few sites. Tips, tricks and facts should appear on their chosen sites.
“Businesses should not be selling in every post because people don’t want to be sold to all of the time,” Cahill said. “Eighty percent of people buy based on recommendations, so on-line word-of-mouth is very important to driving sales and repeat purchase.”
Large businesses like Ivar’s use social media to target customers, and small businesses can use the platforms as an open way to build relationships like they would have without the new technology, Cahill said. While it is often free of cost to advertise using social media, successful users invest extensive time and effort into maintaining the sites and relationships.
Forum and review sites are about seven to 10 years old, and social-media sites are about four years old, Cahill said. With the rise of mobile devices and e-commerce, consumers look to friends’ and smaller group opinions when shopping. Restaurants that don’t have check-in options on Foursquare, Yelp reviews or Urbanspoon reviews lose customers driven by on-line media.
“You need to add value to people’s lives and be yourself, but be real, transparent and authentic,” Cahill said. “Forget what you sell, and think about what people are passionate about related to your product.”
Synergistic sites
Groupon, a program providing discounts from participating stores to members, is an example of how investment in upkeep is vital, Cahill said: Businesses that use Groupon to bring in customers gain a small rise in clientele, but the customers do not usually become repeat customers. Programs like Groupon can be initially beneficial for businesses, but a relationship needs maintenance through other sites.
Local chambers of commerce, social-media consulting companies and Seattle Central Community College also offer classes and workshops for entrepreneurs looking to promote through or understand social media and its influence.
The Washington Women’s Business Center at Community Capital Development helps entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses, according to a King County Library System’s InfoBiz video. Through the nonprofit organization, businesses can receive one-on-one counseling in marketing, management, finance, business plans, financial projections and strategic planning.
The Seattle Social Media Club is another example of a networking group that brings together diverse people in media and other industries. It establishes ethics and standards while promoting media literacy in the city, according to the organization’s website. Beyond classes, this is another way for businesses to explore the influence of social media through sharing.
Nita Conlan, a director at the Washington Women’s Business Center at Community Capital Development, said social media can help businesses, but it depends on what kind of demographic and clientele each is trying to reach. If a company markets to senior citizens, social media may not be beneficial. However, a business with a younger, more on-line demographic may respond to sites like Twitter and Facebook, she said.
Conlan said the social-media programs available to entrepreneurs are free or low-cost classes, and there are workshops for them to learn about specific sites like Twitter and Facebook.
For example, the Marketing with Social Media class offered by the Washington Women’s Business Center has five sessions, and each one addresses a different type of social media. Instructors educate their clients on the available social media and help them develop a market plan to use those most pertinent to their specific businesses, she said.
Social media is a free form of advertising, but businesses need to be careful because social media is a two-way relationship, Conlan said.
“You can promote something quickly on social media, but if somebody makes a silly comment, the next thing you know, it is all around the world,” Conlan said. “It got tweeted, and it was the wrong message. Social media can have detrimental effects, as well.”
The customer experience
Bonnie Lyons, owner of New Renaissance Cakes in Queen Anne, said she uses social-media sites like Facebook, Yelp and Twitter because her customers look on those sites for reviews and information about her shop.
Instead of going store-to-store looking for a bakery to make a custom wedding cake, the younger, marrying-age customers look through on-line reviews, she said.
“I use social media because it’s just that I have to use it,” Lyons said. “My younger clientele demands it.”
Social media is effective for reaching her customer demographic, she said, and she sees a need to increase her on-line promotion as the demand grows. Although she still advertises in a few Seattle trade magazines, she said customers often come in and mention they heard about the cake shop through a review on Yelp.
However, Conlan said, social media is not for every business. It depends on the customer demographic each group is aiming for.
Debbie Sarow, owner of Mercer Street Books in Queen Anne, said she does not use social media to promote her store because it is not “organic” for her or her business. She said she prefers to focus on the customer experience in her store vs. the on-line experience, and she would not consider using social media in the future.
“I like being present with each encounter and setting that I am in rather than living in a virtual world,” Sarow said. “Everything I’ve done for my business has been true to me, and social media is something I find not to be true to my values.”
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