Engaging SMBs via Social Media

We recently surveyed 500 SMB principals to determine which social media they use to learn about, research, and make a purchase decision on products and services for their businesses – in other words, your offerings.

Very small businesses (VSBs, with fewer than 20 employees) are most likely to use Facebook and YouTube to learn about products to help them achieve their business goals. Small businesses (SBs, with 20 to 99 employees) rely on YouTube and Facebook, while midsized businesses (MBs, with 100 to 500 employees) are most likely to turn to Facebook and Instagram. LinkedIn, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok round out each segment’s top five, in varying orders. Interestingly, YouTube isn’t in the top five for MBs, although it’s first or second for VSBs and SBs, and it’s the go-to for MBs at the research and purchase stages. Neither Reddit, Snapchat, nor Threads made the top five for any segment at any stage of the sales cycle.

Top Five Social Media Platforms to Drive SMB Awareness

To conduct product research, VSBs are most likely to use YouTube and Facebook. SBs look to LinkedIn first, then Facebook, while MBs rely most on YouTube and LinkedIn. Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and X round out the top five, depending on the segment.

Top Five Social Media Platforms for SMB Product Research

To make a purchase decision, VSBs and SBs have nearly identical social media preferences: Facebook first, followed by YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram. MBs rely most on YouTube, followed by X, Facebook, and TikTok.

Top Five Social Media Platforms to Support SMB Purchase Decisions

Looking for deeper insight into your target SMB?  Bredin’s global research gives you in-depth, actionable insights to improve your go-to-market, product, pricing, UX, and other strategies. We also generate uniquely valuable data for high-impact content, PR, social, and sales support programs.