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According to Network Solutions and the University of Maryland Smith School of Business, social media adoption by small businesses has doubled from 12 percent to 24 percent in the last year. The results were shown in the Small Business Success Index™ (SBSI) third wave of results.

Connie Steele, Director at Network Solutions says that “Tough market conditions mandate small businesses to think and act creatively to sustain themselves. Social media can be the best friend for small business owners who constantly seek new ways to attract new customers and retain the ones they have at a relatively low cost.”

The studies also showed that one out of five small business owners are actively using social media in their business. Small businesses are increasingly investing in social media applications, including blogs, FacebookFacebook® and LinkedInLinkedIn® profiles.

Here are some more great stats from the study:

Small business owners use social media to attract new customers:

• 75% surveyed have a company page on a social networking site
• 61% use social media for identifying and attracting new customers
• 57% have built a network through a site like LinkedIn
• 45% expect social media to be profitable in the next twelve months

Small business owners still have concerns with social media:

• 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected
• 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the InternetInternet
• Only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it

Small businesses experience positive effects from the economic downturn:

• 72%  have found ways to operate more efficiently (up significantly from 66% in June)
• 47% have been led to find new products and services that benefit customers
• 43% have become better teams as hard times force people to work together

Building online presence continues to be key focus for small businesses:

• Company Web sites are a top technology investment in the next two years, with small businesses either adding new features/functionality to their existing Web sites or building one from scratch.
• The ability to showcase their products and services online to attract new customers is second in the hierarchy of technology investments small business owners plan to make in the next two years.
• Social media investments rank third in small business investments to be made in the next two years.

Network Solutions are hosting a TweetChat to discuss small businesses in Social Mediasocial media. Here are the details. See you there!

Small business owners interested in finding out how your business can start using social media should join us for aTweet Chat #sbbuzz on Feb 23rd, 8-10PM (EST). Anita Campbell, Editor of Small Business Trends, will moderate the discussion to provide additional insight on how to effectively use social networks to generate results. To download a copy of the Small Business Success Index and also find out how your business scores on the six key dimensions of small business success, visit www.growsmartbusiness.com.

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