Much has been said about how social networks are revolutionizing the way businesses interact with their customers. Certainly large companies were the first to jump on the bandwagon, setting up Facebook accounts and Twitter feeds. Now we're seeing small businesses, and many part-time businesses, joining the revolution and setting up their own pages. Not only that, but many of these mom and pop operations exist solely on social networks. They use their pages as their virtual storefront and oftentimes their only storefront. And why not? These pages are free to create and maintain, while traditional websites designed by professionals can easily cost several thousand dollars and don't provide the same level social interaction with customers.
Personally, I only interact with small local companies on Facebook and Twitter. For example, I follow (or "like") Red Zeppelin Pizza here in town. I often check for their daily specials and will sometimes eat there based on that. However, I'd never follow Pizza Hut or Papa John's on a social network. And it's not because I'm a pizza snob. I do, in fact, eat at those places but there just something about a large company trying to go downstream on a social networking site that seems contrived. When I visit these places, I don't feel especially appreciated as a customer, so why should I believe they care about me on Facebook? With local places it's different. When the owner is there and talking to customers, you feel appreciated and when I see their post on a social networking site I can attach a friendly face to the post. What this shows is that a company can't separate its virtual communications from its live interactions with customers.
And speaking of mixing food with a dash of social media, I'm sure many are aware of the food truck revolution that is sweeping the country. This new cottage industry owes its popularity largely to Facebook and Twitter. Because a food truck's location largely depends on where they can find a parking spot, these businesses must be able to quickly and effectively broadcast their daily location to their customers. They do this by tweeting and posting status updates every morning, which often leads to long lines of customers by lunchtime. This business model would simply not work without social media and so it is a great example of how technology can be the primary enabler of new business ventures.
Click here for an article on Baton Rouge's food trucks!
You're absolutely right about large company vs small company with social networking. People want to support local businesses and will join up with them on Facebook.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I don't know if it's a lost cause for larger companies. I've "liked" bigger chains because of promotions they were running at the time. I even made a second purchase because it popped up in my feed and I thought "hmm that sounds really good". Not exactly traditional social networking, but it's certainly not nothing.