According to findings from the Social Media Examiner’s 2011 Social Media Marketing Report, small businesses and solo entrepreneurs reported notably increased business exposure from using social media. Specific findings include:
• 90% of those surveyed say that social media is important for generating more business exposure. Increased traffic (72%) and improved search rankings (62%) were also extremely important. Improved sales was last on the list of seven benefits, with 43% of those surveyed enjoying success.
• The self-employed and small business owners with two or more employees were most likely to report that social media helped them close new business. They also were most likely to find business partnerships through social media.
• More than half (58%) of respondents are using social media for more than six hours per week, and about one-third (34%) invest 11 or more hours weekly.
Source: Social Media Examiner