SMBs are a diverse group, ranging from one person operations with almost no advertising budget to those with 99 employees and tens of thousands of dollars to spend on advertising. In our ongoing Local Commerce Monitor survey, when we look at the lower budget SMBs, also known as our “Core SMBs*”, their annual ad budgets are small as their budgets are typically driven by either their revenue or the money left after they pay other expenses. The Core SMBs spend 21.1%, or approximately $521, of their limited annual advertising budget on social media and this percentage is increasing while their overall ad budget is declining.  BIA/Kelsey attributes this decline to their increased use of digital and social media, which costs less than other types of media. These SMBs, which typically operate with tight budgets, are not putting these cost savings back into additional advertising.

*Core SMBs have an average annual spend of less than $25,000.