Tweet, tweet, can anyone hear me?
Small to medium-sized companies question the business value of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin, according to a new survey.
The Forum of Private Business found that only 52% of its members were using social media and of these 52% expressed serious doubts about its value.
While 6% labeled sites like Twitter and Facebook as ‘useless’, only 7% who used social media described it as ‘very useful’ for their businesses.
Commenting on the findings, Forum spokesman Phil McCabe said: “It’s clear that, while a lot of our members are certainly trying out social media for their businesses, many remain unconvinced of its benefits.
“We believe that social media does hold a great deal of potential for many small to medium enterprises.
"Its conversational, real-time nature makes it ideal for entrepreneurs and small, dynamic firms which often have much more relaxed attitudes towards public relations than big corporations.
"Also, sites like Twitter can provide valuable and cost-free feedback on customer and client satisfaction."
The Forum is currently hosting a series of free breakfast networking events for business owners across the country themed around web awareness and internet technologies.
The next event, which is being held for business owners in the North East, takes place on Tuesday, October 19 at the Hilton Hotel in Gateshead.
More information can be found under at www.fpb.org .
By Linsey McNeill
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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