The One Tool Your Small Business Should Be Using
Today we're talking with Becky McCray. Becky is a small town entrepreneur who writes about small business and rural issues. She also works with small businesses to maintain their web presence and help city governments with project management and grant writing. Her blog SmallBizSurvival.com has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, The New York Times, and more.
Becky's latest project is Tourism Currents, which teaches social media skills to tourism professionals.
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Becky, I don't think I've ever met an entrepreneur with as unique a combination of businesses as you have. Tell everyone how you like to describe what all you do.
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Well in addition to what you have already included, I own a liquor store and a cattle ranch. That combination always gets people excited.
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What's the name of the small town in Oklahoma where you live?
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I live in Hopeton, Oklahoma, and then I always say my hometown is Alva, which is a nearby town of about 5,000 people. Hopeton only has about 30 people.
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In your experience, what is one common roadblock that keeps small businesses from using social media, and how would you suggest they get past that block?
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It seems the most common thing I hear is that people are not sure where to begin. The way to get past that is to learn by doing. So I always encourage people to pick one social tool, and start participating. That's the way that you learn about it, that also gives you the chance to observe what other people are doing and learn from them. For most small businesses in small towns, that one tool should probably be Facebook. Even in Alva, the town of 5,000, there are a lot of people on Facebook, and there's plenty of a customer base there to work with. My own liquor store is represented on Facebook with a page and we actually have decent customer interaction there. It's a good tool, so that's where I encourage people to begin.
I also tell people not to forget who they are. Interacting with these tools is just like interacting in person. So when people say they aren't sure what to do, they're kind of expressing some uncertainty about how they communicate. In all reality, they know how to do that…they just aren't sure how to do that on these tools.
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That's why I really like your suggestion to just start using one. Not only will it help people get past their fears, but it also allows them to learn how to use their normal voice in this online space.
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Yes, and people are also concerned about, "What if I fail and what if I mess up." I can promise you that people do make mistakes on Facebook or any of the social media sites. As long as what you are doing is well intentioned and small in scale, you're very unlikely to have a major disaster on your hands. It's just like when you are talking with a customer and have a slip of the tongue and say the wrong thing. People understand! Don't presume that your customer is going to be much angrier with you just because they're online, because they won't. They're still real people too, just like you.
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Becky, you know me, so you know that I often put my foot in my mouth…it's easier not to do that when I'm typing!
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Same problem here!
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That brings up a good point, though, because something posted online is always out there. If I make a mistake while talking with you, it is only between you and me. If I make that same mistake in the online world, anyone can see it.
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That's true. The difference is… nobody else is going to notice. Especially if you are in a smaller town or a small business, most of your customers are just folks…they're just people, and they're very inclined to give you the benefit of the doubt.
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So we just need to quit putting so much pressure on ourselves!
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You got it.
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Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file:
http://media.libsyn.com/media/biggsuccess/00585-051310.mp3
