If I were a small business owner

If I was a local business owner, I would be too busy in this economy to worry about how the internet is changing and effecting my business. I would hear from my friends or my customers that I need to be on Facebook. I would say I am, but they would say, "no, you need to set up a separate account for your business." I would say, "why? who wants to be friends with a business?". I may give it a try, but I would struggle to log in as my business because my browser keeps my cookies and I would post family photos to my customers. I'd be embarrassed but I'd figure that out. Ultimately, I would see that my business way lonely, and I'd feel badly for leaving it there unattended and unloved.

I would see a review written about me on Yelp or CitySearch, and I'd feel helpless and want to fight back. Who was this person writing about me? Why are they so mean? I'd assume it was probably a competitor. They're so jealous. I'd get angrier and really want to fight back but I wouldn't know how. So I'd probably write something nasty to the website and even post my own review saying the other reviewer was wrong. We'd go back-and-forth in public...and eventually the reviewer would have the last word, because that's how those sites work.

Someone would tell me to sign up for Twitter. I would and realize, wow that was easy. Then I would stare at my screen and wonder what should I write and why. I would be confused that people are following me and unsubscribe because I don't like being followed especially by people in other countries who have very explicit photos. Hmm...

What small business owner has time for all of this? Not me.

So I'd go to Google and search the internet for help with the Internet. I'd see search engine optimization companies and consultants. I'd see word of mouth marketers and reputation managers. I'd see digital mavens and gurus and social media conferences. I wouldn't know where to begin...so I'd sign up for Google. That must be safe. That must be what all the other businesses are doing. I'd get an adwords account. I'd spend a few nights reading how it works and I'd set my budget. I'd start getting lots of clicks on my website but I wouldn't know if more people are visiting my store. I would question whether or not I was spending enough money to get results. Google's business center would make some helpful suggestions: spend more and don't run your ads in cities where you don't have a business. I'd try this advice and get more clicks, but still wouldn't be able to tell if more people were coming into my store.

This all brings me back to my first point: If I was a local business owner, I would be too busy in this economy to worry about how the internet is changing and effecting my business.

At CityVoter, we speak to thousands of business owners each month. We worry about promoting their local businesses, so the local business owners don't have to. We've begun using Twitter to promote our contests and our businesses, and we're about to launch new features that make our coupons/insider deals even better. We're even promoting our winners' photos on the iphone app. I would love your feedback and suggestions on what else we can do. It doesn't need to be this hard. You've got a business to run. Give us some great photos...we'll do the rest.