Use of social media among small business owners up 42 per cent: Survey

One-quarter using it to find talent, up from 11 per cent

Small business owners in Canada are becoming increasingly tech-savvy, according to a BMO Bank of Montreal report.

More than one-half (57 per cent) use social media — up from 40 per cent in 2012. And 46 per cent use social media to promote their company's brand, while 38 per cent use it to sell products and services

Another 38 per cent use social media to crowd source ideas or suggestions, up 15 points from 2012, found the survey of 301 employers.

One-third (35 per cent) leverage social media to track what is being said about their company, an increase of 17 points from 2012. One-quarter (26 per cent) track sentiment about their competitors.

"Social media tools are playing an increasingly important role for Canadian business owners as they continue to look for ways to increase and protect their brand profile while deepening their connection with customers," said Steve Murphy, senior vice-president of commercial banking at BMO Bank of Montreal.

Sourcing talent

One-quarter of businesses are using social media to search and source new talent, up 11 percentage points from last year, found the survey. This increase is reflected in the spikes seen in the types of social platforms businesses are using:

•LinkedIn saw an 87 per cent increase in engagement from small businesses, with 28 per cent of businesses using it — up from 15 per cent in 2012.

•Facebook also saw a significant jump, with 43 per cent of small businesses using the tool — up from 27 per cent last year.

•Nearly one-in-five businesses (17 per cent) are now using Twitter — up from 10 per cent in 2012.

Small businesses

Overall

Atlantic

Quebec

Ontario

Alberta

B.C.

Total Use Social Media

57%

65%

56%

59%

66%

56%

Facebook

43%

47%

32%

48%

40%

43%

LinkedIn

23%

19%

13%

29%

24%

23%

Twitter

11%

15%

8%

13%

10%

11%

Latest stories