MySpace Courting Small Business Advertisers

10/31/2008

Got $25. Then you can advertise on MySpace. One small business advertiser reported a 30% jump in sales after investing just $500 in MySpace advertising. Their product received blog buzz and before you know it, site traffic had doubled and sales had jumped. This demonstrates the power of the social networking giant.

The site is banking on more small businesses seeing the light. Last month, the site unwrapped MyAds. It allows small business owners and individuals to design their own banner ad. It also allows advertisers to choose which group they target on MySpace. Tracking capability is also offered. MySpace is going after small to mid-size businesses, e.g., those who want to spend less than $25,000. Advertisers can spend as little as $25, as mentioned above.

The Cost Effective Alternative to Traditional Advertising

With the economy in a downturn, experts say that it won’t be easy to convince companies to take a chance on social networking marketing. It is an unproven entity in many cases and is being launched when many businesses are cutting back on ad spending.

This is coupled with the fact that social network marketing tends to be more about long-term brand building than immediate sales, which makes it an even tougher sale in this economy. However, MySpace is banking on entrepreneurs to turn to this cheaper form of advertising since it is low-risk, in addition to low cost.

Up until this point, MySpace courted big budget advertisers and ad agencies. Realizing however that laser-targeted advertising for small business is a growing market, the company is seeking to capitalize on this. It is one of the few outlets that give small businesses the opportunity to show display ads on social networks. In the case of MySpace, this means the potential to reach over 120 million users.

Taking the Long-Term View

Ultimately MySpace hopes that by allowing companies to sample, if you will, the power of social network marketing, it will help them overcome any objections they may have to it. MySpace co-founder DeWolfe says that it seems to be working. Some advertisers who’ve taken advantage of MyAds have experienced a 50% to 300% jump in people clicking on their ad, he says.

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