Small Business Social Media Statistics

Small businesses tend to overlook the importance of social media. On the other hand, a lot of digital marketers overemphasize its role in your marketing strategies. We’ve compiled these social media small business statistics to help you get a better understanding of the actual value that it can offer you.

First, we’ll look at data that answers some of the most important questions you may have about social media. Then, we’ll offer a lightning round of other important social media small business statistics for you to chew on.

What Percentage of Companies Use Social Media?

According to Statista, in 2020, just short of 92% of U.S. companies with at least 100 employees used some form of social media marketing.  

Now, obviously, this statistic encompasses lots of big businesses, so why exactly does it matter to you? Well, we thought it was important to look at the big picture in order to set some context for our next piece of data.

If 92% of 100+ employee businesses are using social media…  

What Percentage of Small Businesses Use Social Media?

One survey from BIA/Kelsey found that a little over 77% of small businesses rely on social media to market their services and brand.  

Now, BIA/Kelsey’s data is from 2016, but even if we compare it to Statista’s numbers for that same year (89.5%), there is a clear trend of small businesses lagging significantly behind when it comes to social media marketing.

For you, this means there is less competition. Less small businesses marketing on social media means you have a better chance of being seen, heard, and shared by your audiences.

Why Do Small Businesses Need Social Media?

The average internet user spends 145 minutes on social media. Every. Single. Day.

That’s more than 2 hours a day. More than 15% of the time most people spend awake.

Small businesses need social media because that’s where their customers are. And if you aren’t there to meet them, your competition will be.  

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that those 2+ hours are divided up over multiple platforms. So if you are only active on one or two, you may not be capturing all the attention you could be.

SocialMediaToday reports that the average user spends the following amounts of time on the most popular platforms every day:

• Youtube = 40 minutes
• Facebook = 35 minutes
• Snapchat = 25 minutes
• Instagram = 15 minutes

How Much Time Should a Business Spend on Social Media?

One survey shared in Entrepreneur reported that 43 percent of small businesses spend almost an entire day of work on their social media marketing every week. On average, respondents spent 6 hours over the course of the week.

However, that doesn’t necessarily dictate your needs. Really, the answer comes down to what your competition is doing and what your priorities are. If spending time on social media marketing is causing you to miss out on other leads, then it is probably time wasted. You would be better off outsourcing your social media management to an expert.

5 More Social Media Small Business Statistics

Let’s look at several more small business social media statistics and talk about their implications for you.

Facebook Is Still King of the Mountain

As of January 2021, Facebook still holds its position as the #1 social media platform, boasting more than 2.7 billion monthly active users worldwide.

For most small businesses in most industries, this means that if you only have time to invest in a few platforms, Facebook should probably be one of them.

YouTube Is a Close Second

YouTube comes in at 2.2 billion users. And because the average daily time spent by users is 5 minutes higher than Facebook (40 versus 35), that means it could be just as much of an opportunity to get in front of customers.

Social Media Usage Varies By Generation

You are going to want to keep your target audience in mind as you weigh the amount of time and money you are going to invest in social media. If your business caters primarily to a specific age range, you should consider the following stats about the percentage of each generation that is active on social media:

• 90% of Millennials
• 78% of Gen Xers
• 48% of Baby Boomers

(source: Oberlo)

54% of People on Social Media Use It To Research Products

According to GlobalWebIndex, social media isn’t just about connecting with friends and family. Users report using their favorite platforms to make purchasing decisions too.

For small businesses, this means that social media provides you a way to organically sell yourself.

Customers are going to Facebook, Instagram, and other networks to learn more about what to spend their money on. You can use your platforms to put your best foot forward and control your brand’s online presence.

90% of Marketers Report Social Media as Having a Positive Effect On Brand Exposure

Small Business Trends reports that the vast majority of businesses engaged in active social media marketing are seeing positive results.  

Even more important than brand exposure, though, three-fourths of businesses report that their social media campaigns have led to an increase in traffic. And more traffic means more leads and more sales.

Is It Time To Up Your Social Media Game?

If this data tells us nothing else, it’s that every small business stands to benefit from social media marketing. But like anything, you’ve got to put into it if you want to get something out of it.

If you’re looking to keep your social media in-house, you should read our guide to Effective Social Media Marketing for Small Business. We cover 5 of the most important tips to make your social media work do more for you with less effort.

But it’s also worth asking yourself how much time you want to be spending managing your own social accounts. As we mentioned earlier, 43% of small businesses spend 6 hours every week on their social marketing.

Is that time you have to spare?

If you want to save yourself the time and hassle of handling every aspect of your social networks, consider outsourcing some of the work to the talented freelancers on Legiit.  

These professionals make it their life’s work to help small businesses like yours grow through effective social media marketing strategies. And Legiit offers a secure platform for you to connect with them.

Read their reviews and check out the services they have to offer here: Social Media Marketing Services on Legiit