St. Michael-Albertville Small Businesses: Survey Results

Earlier this month, I set out to collect some information from St.Michael-Albertville area small business owners. It was an informal survey designed to give a snapshot of what some of our current struggles are as we try to maintain the daily operations of a business.

 Although the response rate wasn’t huge (the survey garnered 12 responses) the results provided some insight to areas that most respondents agreed were important to learn more about.

Demographics and Results

One hundred percent of those who completed the survey considered themselves small business owners or partners in their companies. More than half of these companies have pretty small staff (between 1 and 5 employees). And although primary business focuses were almost an even split between business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C), there were definite similarities in the needs of these businesses:

• The majority (43 percent) said that business development and new lead generation was the one area of business that is hardest to make time for

• All of those who answered the social media/online question said they have a company website that is in current use

• None of those businesses who participated in the survey currently use photo sharing sites regularly as part of their business

• Only one participant mentioned the use of YouTube on a regular basis

• The top two topics business owners want to learn more about? Marketing and new media as well as sales leads/generation. Both of these categories received a 63% response. Time management and business planning were second, each at 38 percent.

What does this mean?

First, it tells me that business owners in our area are looking to learn. To get more information. To make their businesses the best they can be. This is awesome and I’m committed to providing helpful content each week for you, here on the blog, in order to make that happen.

Second, it tells me where the work needs to come in. No matter the question, the survey answers all had a “new” theme. Small businesses are looking for new ways to market, new ways to generate sales, new trends within their own industry.

Third, it tells me that there’s work to do in the areas of social media and online marketing. Even on other platforms such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, that companies mentioned they are a part of, the majority of local businesses in the STMA area are not coming up in Google searches or through social media search (I’m talking on a whole, not just from those who took the survey). In my profession, Google search (SEO) and social search (SMO) is something I look at daily; Albertville and St. Michael are missing the boat, for those most part, when it comes to those two areas of business and brand awareness.

So my first challenge to you? Search your company online. Where do you rank in a Google search? If you type your name in a Twitter search are you coming up (you should if you have an account here)? Same thing on Facebook. Think about your reasoning for not being on YouTube. Did you know it’s the second highest search engine (with Google being number one)? Can people find you online?

Now, it’s not something you can fix in a day, or a week or even a month. And I’m not saying you need to jump in to every social media platform right now. And I definitely don’t recommend that you go out there and set up accounts without a plan (or someone to manage those accounts on a daily basis). But, if you have a presence on these sites, the work is in making them known to your customers and being active in those social spaces. Establishing a plan. Doing research. Sticking with it.

Now what?

My challenge to you above is something small you can do to start; and it’s just one area of many that I hear we all can use some help with. As businesses owners, time is golden, so little things you can do each day to grow your business are key.

Each week, I’ll talk about these things. I’ll give you insights on what you should be thinking about when it comes to social media. How you can generate new leads and customers. I’ll tell you all about trends in different industries and case studies of other businesses doing stellar work.

Follow what pertains to you and your business and try a few tips along the way. Ask questions and be a part of the conversation; continue to let me know what is beneficial for you to hear about as you continue on your business journey.

Melissa Harrison is principal at Allée, a strategic communications consulting and design firm. For additional information from the STMA Small Business Survey, contact her via email, Twitter or Facebook.