Some of the world’s largest companies are accepting that they have been slow to engage with social media tools such as Facebook and twitter, especially when compared to their smaller business counterparts.

With big organisations now confirming that the time has come for them to recognise social media as an official tool to levitate business, one has to wonder what’s taken them so long?! SMEs are way ahead of corporates and it seems that big businesses are turning to the example set by SMEs – as if they have been waiting to see how they got on with it before diving in! The fact is though, businesses who’ve been quick to include social media as part of their communications model have proved that there is a new engagement marketing model replacing the traditional broadcast marketing methods of time gone by!

Perhaps it was a case of larger firms preferring to stick with what they know best? Could have been change resistance, fear of technology? Maybe just a case of “the bigger it is the harder it is to turn”? Who knows – what is now clear is that by sticking to traditional broadcast marketing methods, these companies have been missing out. Small and medium sized businesses, who engaged with social media early, have found their way and are now beginning to really understand how to make best use of these tools to really reap the benefits – in some circumstances these smaller businesses are generating more revenue from social media then larger companies can attribute to much more costly advertising campaigns.

Larger companies do need to get round the lack of agility that size often creates, to keep relevant in a new online social world they need to be as quick to adapt as their customers, and, they need to “be” where their customers are – and that typically is online and within social media and social networks. Yes it will require some thought, yes there will need to be a whole raft of new “rules” for employees who may present the business online, intentionally or inadvertently – but this should not be vastly different to any standard terms and conditions, it is only range of media that has increased!

Social Media Is Really No Different

In the past employees had to agree to email policies and were required to attend training before being allowed to speak to the press on behalf of the business. Use of social media is really no different – at the end of the day if someone using social media for business breaks the business communications policy it would be addressed just the same as if it had been the email policy or the press communications policy!

The thing is, if they don’t get over their internal wrangling with self-imposed barriers to progress then over the next few years they are as good as dead in the water! Perhaps if they realised that over 44% of SMEs are acquiring new customers through using social networking sites vs. just 28% of larger firms, they would switch their marketing focus more readily!

At e-mphasis, we recommend that every business start to trial using social media and social networking, to discover what works for them. Social networking is undoubtedly the most significant and most effective business tool of the 21st century. Make sure that you don’t get left behind, get started now!