Imagine yourself sitting at home on the couch, thinking yourself a true Louis CK as you concoct a stellar tweet like this one:

Pretty funny. One or two of your buddies are bound to enjoy it. Well, little did you know, SmartCar was made aware of this tweet and responded with this:

https://twitter.com/smartcarusa/status/215199492465639425?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

A large-scale corporate entity decides to interact with one individual, who by the sounds of it, isn’t even a customer. Why? Because of the exposure. One tweet, and everyone online is talking about SmartCar.

These days, corporate social media presence is just an extension of the marketing division. And just like the marketing division, it isn’t a component critical to a company’s survival. Tons of companies around the world get by just fine without any need to market themselves. That being said, for a company to truly reach its potential, it is necessary to market themselves, and in turn, expand their presence across social media.

The benefits of social media are apparent, by sheer numbers alone. After the second quarter of 2015, Facebook reported 1.49 billion active monthly users (cite) while Twitter is reporting 316 million active users. While those might be the two largest platforms, they serve as an excellent example for the amount of global users at any one time.  Add on to that how the majority of social media users are within the ages of 15-25, widely accepted as the most coveted demographic for advertisers, and it would be foolish for companies not to get themselves involved. From there, you can imagine the versatility of a further presence in websites such as Vimeo, Reddit or Tumblr, and how a brand might become a part of more and more people’s digital experience.

It’s also easy. Take for example, the Super Bowl. Try to imagine the cost differential between a 15-second television spot during the broadcast compared to the cost of a tweet (hint: it’s free). That’s exactly what Oreo did during the 2013 Super Bowl, where the infamous blackout halted play for 30 minutes.

Power out? No problem. http://t.co/dnQ7pOgC—
Oreo Cookie (@Oreo) February 04, 2013

One successful tweet put them on the computers of millions, and all it took was some clever thinking and quick editing.

Though as cheap and effective as a social media presence can be, it isn’t the piece de resistance of a corporation. An efficient online presence requires dedicated staff, an expense that not all companies can afford. Word of mouth is still the standard for local shops; so long as a product has quality, word will spread. Whether it’s the local barbershop, farmer’s market, or dry cleaners, an online presence won’t necessarily prove useful. The digital audience may not be large enough to justify its existence, and as such, those companies will get along just fine.

So when opening up your own business, a social media presence shouldn’t be at the top of the list of priorities. But if there’s enough time, give it a shot. It offers an excellent opportunity to interact with the customers, gain some digital exposure, and for the most part, it’s all free.

 

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