Tag: small business research

  • Co-Op Advertising Fund Users Have Big Plans for 2019

    Co-Op Advertising Fund Users Have Big Plans for 2019

     More than 40% of US small businesses (SMBs) sell brands or branded products that potentially qualify for co-op funding. Local media and marketing sellers have a significant revenue opportunity in helping eligible SMBs access co-op programs. But many media sellers face execution challenges in trying to access co-op funds on behalf of advertisers. According to Greg…

  • Video = Local Ad Opportunity

    Video = Local Ad Opportunity

    Thanks to commercials from Apple that show us how easy it is to make videos and pull on our heartstrings, we see how powerful a video can be in selling phones. Consumers driving the popularity of video, and a recent study from Promo, found that most consumers view Facebook video ads as relevant or highly relevant. …

  • Is Facebook Use Among Local Businesses Slowing In Growth?

    Is Facebook Use Among Local Businesses Slowing In Growth?

    Emarketer recently reported that more than half of all Americans use Facebook and that has increased only by 0.9% since last year according to their estimates. The growth is primarily driven by the older demographic (boomers, Gen Xers and millennials) with younger demographic leaving Facebook. So are local businesses also shifting away from Facebook to other digital…

  • BIA Launches New Survey of Marketers Targeting Local Audiences, Includes National and Regional Marketers

    BIA Launches New Survey of Marketers Targeting Local Audiences, Includes National and Regional Marketers

    BIA will be releasing results of a newly designed survey including local, and now multi-location/regional and national, businesses that target local audiences in their advertising and marketing. The new survey series, Survey of Advertising and Marketing – SAM, replaces our long-running survey series Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) that surveyed small and medium businesses (SMBs), or…

  • Small Business Research – DIY Solutions vs. Paid Assistance

    Small Business Research – DIY Solutions vs. Paid Assistance

    Out of necessity, small businesses are the quintessential multi-taskers when it comes to advertising and marketing their businesses. Technology and the low cost of digital advertising has made it somewhat easier for a small business to advertise on their own. In fact many small businesses prefer to DIY their advertising because they believe it’s lower cost and…

  • SMBs Advertising on Local TV & MVPDs: Building Data-Driven Campaigns from Customer Lists

    SMBs Advertising on Local TV & MVPDs: Building Data-Driven Campaigns from Customer Lists

    Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have out-sized marketing power with the range of integrated advertising technology (adtech) and marketing technology (martech) platforms that are affordable for businesses with less than 100 employees. For any business to benefit from data-driven media campaigns, it must first have a good idea of not only its current customer base, but…

  • Mobile is the Fastest Growing Advertising Channel

    Mobile is the Fastest Growing Advertising Channel

    56.5% of small businesses are using mobile advertising, according to data from BIA’s latest Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey report, Mobile Advertising and Small Businesses, up from 22.9% of small businesses just two years ago. Small business advertisers are attracted to mobile’s better ad reach, as well as customer and location-based targeting capabilities. Mobile should be sold as part of the digital…

  • 8 out of 10 Small Businesses Use Social Media Advertising

    8 out of 10 Small Businesses Use Social Media Advertising

      80% of small businesses use social media for advertising and promotion, according to data from BIA’s latest Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey report, Social Media Advertising and Small Businesses. This includes free social media channels, such as a Facebook page.  Local advertising on social media channels will be $23.3 billion, according to BIA/Kelsey’s U.S. Local Advertising Forecast 2018: Mobile and Social estimates. By 2022 social…

  • Video Advertisers Have Aggressive Plans to Increase Ad Spend in 2018

    Video Advertisers Have Aggressive Plans to Increase Ad Spend in 2018

    BIA Advisory Services reported that video advertising in local will continue to outpace local advertising in growth for the next five years. Mobile local video is growing at 14.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) as increased consumer mobile usage is making location targeting easier. Video for small businesses are usually produced on their own or…

  • StartUp Small Businesses See Best ROI from Radio, TV and Mobile

    StartUp Small Businesses See Best ROI from Radio, TV and Mobile

    Start-up small businesses reported that as they are getting established in their local markets they use a lot of free and low cost media. No surprise that they are focused on visibility and are heavy users of giveaways and community sponsorships.  Of the paid media they use, the most value comes from broadcast (radio and TV) and…

  • Half of SMBs say their mobile apps deliver high ROI. Mobile app retargeting can improve this.

    Half of SMBs say their mobile apps deliver high ROI. Mobile app retargeting can improve this.

    BIA’s Local Commerce Monitor reveals that 45.1 percent of SMBs use mobile apps. These SMBs rate this marketing channel highly in terms of ROI for their ad spend. Overall, about half (49 percent) rate their investments in mobile apps as returning as least 10x what they spend. Breaking this down further, about a quarter each say the…

  • Six out of Ten TV/Cable Advertisers Produced a Video in the Last 12 Months

    Six out of Ten TV/Cable Advertisers Produced a Video in the Last 12 Months

    61.4% of small businesses that advertise on TV or cable had a video produced in the last 12 months, according to data from BIA’s Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey, which is more than double the average from the full sample (26.3%). Where are they posting these videos they produce? Their top video channels used, according to LCM, were their…

  • Retail Small Businesses See Better ROI With TV Than Digital Ads

    Retail Small Businesses See Better ROI With TV Than Digital Ads

    Free and low-cost digital and social media channels are most popular in use among retail small businesses, but they give higher return on investment (ROI) marks to traditional media channels such as TV and cable, according to data from Wave 21 of our Local Commerce Monitor™ survey of small businesses (Q3/2017). Over half of the retail small businesses…

  • Entertainment Small Businesses Are Digital DIYers

    Entertainment Small Businesses Are Digital DIYers

    Entertainment small businesses use numerous (average 10) channels to promote their venues and services so it’s no surprise they lean toward digital and social media. Their top three most used media channels for advertising and promotion are digital and either free or have low-cost alternatives. But their affinity for free and low-cost solutions is evident…

  • Franchisees Print and Promote Along with Digital Advertising

    Small business franchisees are fast learners. They use more advertising channels and adopt digital channels at a higher rate than most small businesses. Thanks to the support from their franchisors they have marketing tools that help them compete with larger brands in local and be present at different stages in the customer shopping experience. From…

  • Traditional Still Important Part of Franchisees’ Ad Strategy

    Traditional Still Important Part of Franchisees’ Ad Strategy

    Franchisees use an average of 14 different media channels for their advertising and promotion. While their mix leans more toward digital  traditional media remains an important part of franchisees’ advertising strategy, according to data from Wave 21 of our Local Commerce Monitor™ survey of small businesses (Q3/2017). Half of their top 10 most used media channels were…

  • Three Out of Four Franchisees Plan to Increase Advertising Spend in 2018

    Three Out of Four Franchisees Plan to Increase Advertising Spend in 2018

    Core franchisees* spent an average of $2,009 on advertising and promotion in 2017, while Plus Spender franchisees* spent an average of $86,275, according to Wave 21 of our Local Commerce Monitor™ survey of small businesses (Q3/2016). Over 3/4 of franchisees (77%) plan to increase their advertising budgets over the next 12 months. Another fifth (19.6%) will maintain…

  • With Most Home and Trade Small Businesses Maintaining Ad Spend, What’s A Seller to Do?

    With Most Home and Trade Small Businesses Maintaining Ad Spend, What’s A Seller to Do?

    With nearly 7 out of 10 Home & Trade* small businesses planning to maintain their current ad spend levels, what is a service seller to do? We delved into the latest data on small businesses in the Home & Trade vertical from BIA/Kelsey’s Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey of small businesses and it was a mixed bag. The…

  • Small Businesses Differ in Their Marketing Tools

    Small Businesses Differ in Their Marketing Tools

    Small businesses use technology and tools along with their advertising and marketing to run their businesses. Depending on the type of small business there are differences in what they use and adopt.  We delve into the differences and similarities of small businesses  from BIA/Kelsey’s Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey of small businesses. Small businesses in the Entertainment…

  • Smallest of Small Businesses Rely on Low Cost Digital and Social Advertising

    Smallest of Small Businesses Rely on Low Cost Digital and Social Advertising

    Small businesses are diverse and in our Local Commerce Monitor™ (LCM) survey of small businesses we look at segments like the smallest of small businesses in terms of their advertising buying power. The smallest of  small businesses we call “Core SMBs,” as they spend less than $25K annually on advertising and promotion. Their average budgets are very small, for…