Advertising, like everything else today, is moving straight to the Internet. According to Scherr Technology Internet advertising is growing faster than any other medium in history. In 2008 the Internet sales totaled to $23.4 billion in the United States alone (scherrtech.com). One of the top Internet advertising resources is social media. By next year social media advertisement in sites such as Facebook and Myspace are estimated to reach at least $1.4 billion (idgknowledgehub.com). After searching through different social media sites I came across Matt Whitaker, Office Associate of a small business development center. Mr. Whitaker was kind enough to answer a list of questions for me pertaining to social media advertising.

Seeing how fast social media is growing Mr. Whitaker said that he encouraged all of his clients to use some form of social media. “The number reason I encourage my clients to use social media for advertisement is because it’s free,” stated Mr. Whitaker. When you compare it to the cost of television ads and radio ads you can’t beat it. As of now there is no cost to join Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, WordPress and many other social media sites. Many of Mr. Whitaker’s clients have Facebook fan pages with over 100 fans on them. Facebook fan pages allows that person to have a direct link with his or hers fans. Mr. Whitaker felt that sites such as Yelp and Urbanspoon were good for clients that had restaurants and local shops. Both Yelp and Urbanspoon are popular review websites. Customers can go on those site and post reviews of restaurants as well as: pictures, menus and anything else that relates to those businesses. Mr. Whitaker said that those sites weren’t as popular in some towns but he felt like they were headed that way. By creating a profile on a social media site you are able to take ownership of that page, and make it a little more personalized, add your own (good) pictures of menu items, the menu in general, contact information, etc, which is Mr. Whitaker’s favorite part. Mr. Whitaker stated, “You can also encourage clients to post their own reviews, and increase your reputation. It also lets you, as a business owner, stay in the loop and listen to the customer.”

Facebook is Mr. Whitaker’s preferred social media for himself and his client. He said the reason being was because everyone has it. “If you own a restaurant, and open a Facebook page – you probably employ people that are on Facebook. They will probably sign up for your page just because they work there, and that will be visible to their friends,” stated Mr. Whitaker. The great thing about social media is by getting yourself out there you can spread the word without even realizing it.

The two main social media’s that Mr. Whitaker uses are Twitter and Facebook. He said that each service had a different use for them at the small business development center. “Twitter enables us to stay connected with SBDC’s across the US. It also provides us a direct link to many Small Business networks/providers. It is also a way to advertise to our clients, but for us it serves more as a way to branch out beyond Kentucky,” stated Mr. Whitaker. Mr. Whitaker feels that Facebook appeals more towards his clients or local businesses. He feels that most businesses in Kentucky probably are not as familiar with Twitter. Mr. Whitaker’s job uses both Facebook and Twitter to advertise their workshops and training events. With Twitter he said they are able to post more information that may be related to Small Business in general and with Facebook they could upload pictures and have wall discussions.

Mr. Whitaker feels that the number one benefit from social media is that it is free. Another major benefit he feels is that people are now placing an increasing emphasis on user reviews which is why sites like Yelp, Urbanspoon, Amazon reviews and others are so important.

Mr. Whitaker said he felt like social media was a good form of advertising, but he thought in the end it depended on the business. He said that some businesses may not need it, that they have to look at their customer base.

Mr. Whitaker said that he could see social media increasing and becoming even more involved with our everyday lives. “Especially with increased use of smartphones. People can already check out reviews from their phone, and it will just become more integrated into our lifestyles.,” stated Mr. Whitaker.

Not only does social media have statistics to back up its increasingly growing rate, but its customer’s support it too. I agree with most everything Mr. Whitaker had to say and I feel that social media is only going to get larger.

References
Yarow, Jay. “Internet Advertising.” Internet Advertising Growing Faster Than Any
Medium In History – $23.4b in 2008. Scherr Technology. 14 Apr. 2009.

Yorke, Matt. “Social Advertising.” A New Dawn For Publishers?. IDG Knowledge Hub.
19 Mar. 2010.