how smbs in france are embracing social media [2015 research]
TRANSCRIPT
How SMBs in France are embracing social media
Who did we survey? 168 Decision-Makers in Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) in France How are SMBs defined? Businesses with:
• Less than 500 employees • Less than €5M annual
revenue
This report explores how Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) in Europe make use of social media.
SMBs in France are growing …and are using Social Media
63%
59%
have an increased number of customers
have increased overall revenue
have increased overall profitability 50%
4
SMBs in France are experiencing widespread year-on-year growth
HYPER-GROWTH Significant increase in overall
revenue compared to last year
5
15% of SMBs report that they are currently in a hyper-growth phase
14%
46%
38%
GROWTH Increase in overall revenue
compared to last year
NON-GROWTH No change or decrease in overall revenue compared to last year
6
Almost all SMBs surveyed use Social Media for their business…
91% of SMBs are Current
Users of Social Media
6% are Future Users
7
90%
60% 58%
43% 39% 36%
15%
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook YouTube Google+ Viadeo Instagram
and LinkedIn is the #1 Social Media site used by the companies of the individual SMB professionals surveyed
SMBs see Social Media as a key way to meet their business challenges
9
SMBs reported social media and lead generation as key drivers for revenue and customer growth
32%
12%
20%
6%
25% 24%
Contributed to growth incustomer numbers
Contributed to growth inoverall revenue
Social media and social ads
Other online ads
Lead Generation
10
SMB’s have increased their spend in both social media and lead generation and plan a further increase in the next year
50%
38%
50%
27%
Increased spend this year Plan to increase spend nextyear
Social Media
Lead generation
3 in 4 of all SMBs that increased social media spend this year, planned to increase spend again next year
11
Top challenges currently faced by SMBs relate to generating business, boosting profit margins and hiring
24%
25%
28%
35%
66%
Keeping up with technology
Increasing profit margins
Finding and hiring good employees
Marketing and advertising effectively
Attracting new / retaining current customers
12
Social media is helping SMBs overcome some of their key challenges
“Social media is important for retaining/getting new
customers”
“Social media is important for marketing my company”
81%
68%
Social media helps my
company source and hire new employees
54%
SMBs are looking for financial information on LinkedIn
14
have used LinkedIn for financial purposes
40% 45% are already using Social Media for at least one financial purpose
15
SMBs can be reached at each stage of their decision making journey on LinkedIn
3%
3%
4%
7%
8%
13%
14%
15%
19%
23%
Purchased an insurance product
Purchased an investment product
Opened a new financial account
Asked a financial professional for additional info about afinancial product / policy / account type
Discussed a financial product / policy or account typewith a family member, friend or colleague
Conducted additional research on a financial product
Contacted a financial representative
Learned about a financial company was not aware of
Learned of a financial product was not aware of
Shared info about financial trends/products/companies
Awareness
Consideration
Purchase
SMBs will be most engaged by do-it-yourself content, as well as innovation news and peer or expert reviews
16
Top 6 Impactful Types of Financial Services Content
1
Best practices, How-To-guides, checklists
2
New innovation and technology developments
6
Market and economic commentary
5
Peer ratings, reviews or testimonials
4
Expert ratings, reviews or testimonials
3
Customer stories and case studies
17
Customer service and reputation feature highly as factors to consider when choosing a financial services company
Top 3 Consideration Factors
3. Brand & Reputation 42%
2. Customer Service 54%
1. Charges and Rates 56%
Transparency and clarity as well as direct experience with a provider, are key to increasing the confidence of SMBs
5%
67%
28% Confidence in the Financial Service
industry in the past 12 months
Increased confidenceStayed the sameDecreased confidence
6%
7%
23%
34%
45%
51%
62%
Visibility of employees
Press coverage
Conversations with friends / family / colleagues
Responding quickly to enquiries
Personal experience dealing with a provider
Clear explanations of products and services
Transparency of price and terms / conditions
Factors that would increase confidence in the Financial Service industry
Key findings Implications for marketers
Almost all SMBs in France use social media
An active presence on LinkedIn is crucial for successful marketing and customer acquisition
SMBs can be reached on LinkedIn at each stage of their financial decision making journey
Tap into vast pools of potential customers by providing them an avenue to share information about your brand and products
Clear content related to financial products and services and better customer service are things SMBs look for in financial service brands
Use LinkedIn to disseminate information about financial products and services, customer service and to build confidence
1
2
3
Key findings Implications for marketers
Almost all SMBs in France use social media
An active presence on LinkedIn is crucial for successful marketing and customer acquisition
Tap into vast pools of potential customers by providing them an avenue to share information about your brand and products
Use LinkedIn to disseminate information about financial products and services, customer service, and to build confidence
Contact us at https://lnkd.in/contact_us.