What It Takes To Be a Social Midsize Business

Patrick McFadden • November 27, 2013

What does “social” truly mean, and how can midsize businesses use it’s dominance on the world scene to grow their business?

Real social marketing takes dedication, intense focus and hard work on the right things. Winners don’t beat the competition because they work harder. The secret, is in understanding what matters.

Serious midsize businesses that want to be social, must know that in order to harness the power of social, it takes understanding these three things that matter:

  1. Listening to your audience
  2. Sharing your relevant message
  3. Enabling others to share your relevant message

And what do you share, and hope that others will? Content—Information.

Now, it’s not enough to push your content to social media channels. You also have to create and cultivate conversations around it. Think of it as finishing the content with a thought-provoking question, then managing the answers, learning on the go, discussing the content with the audience in question. That makes your midsize business, social and its assets, like content.

Sure, you can utilize social channels in a way, where you may engage in conversations with your audience,  to promote your content. But these social channels are more equipped to host the conversation resulting from the content, not just serve as a billboard advertisement or promotional tool for it.

Being a social midsize business means caring beyond shipping the content. It’s about asking your clearly defined and understood target audience for their opinion and really caring what that opinion is. It’s about bilateral intimacy—engagement. The end result is that you can create even more social context with your prospects and customers.

The truth is, whether you’re a midsize business , small business or a lone entrepreneur, social marketing can be the most inexpensive and powerful marketing tool in your arsenal to build the trust and authority that — in the best case — helps  exponentially  grow your business.

Question: What other benefits do you see to being a social business? 

About the Author:  Patrick McFadden is a  marketing consultant/coach  for small businesses and organizations. He is also a featured marketing contributor to  American Express Open Forum  and has been named a marketing thought leader for small businesses.

By Patrick McFadden April 18, 2025
Understanding platform intent, sales cycles, and what actually works in high-ticket home services
By Patrick McFadden March 31, 2025
1. The Challenge: VMI was like many service providers — positioning their value around what they thought clients wanted : “Office furniture installation and assembly — let us handle creating your perfect workspace.” But the actual buyers — facility managers, project managers, furniture reps — weren’t looking for “perfect workspaces.” They were trying to avoid installation nightmares . Their real priority? ✅ Great installation days. ✅ No chaos. ✅ No missed deadlines. ✅ No angry phone calls from clients. 2. The Insight: After conducting stakeholder interviews under our marketing strategy consulting engagement , the Indispensable Marketing team uncovered critical feedback: “We need installers who maintain a professional site and follow instructions.” “We lose relationships when installations go badly.” “I need quotes back quickly or I can’t sell the job.” This wasn’t just about services , it was about trust, problem-solving , and professional reliability . So we reframed their differentiators not by what they did, but how they showed up : Same-day project quotes Problem-solving on-site Update protocol with clients Professionalism guarantee Lasting Impression Insurance 3. The Shift: We shifted the positioning from vague benefits to real-world, emotional triggers : Instead of: “Let us create your perfect workspace.” Now: “Get the perfect installation day, every time.” That subtle shift aligns with who’s actually buying (and who feels the pain when things go wrong). The end-user may care about the workspace. But the buyer cares about the install . 4. The Lesson for Others: If you’re selling a service, don’t describe what you do. Describe what the client wants to avoid or achieve — and who the real buyer is. Then, systematize what you’re already doing well and give it a name. Just like our team did with: “Same Day Quotes” “Lasting Impression Insurance” “Reliable Presence Protocol” 5. The Outcome Within weeks of updating their messaging and positioning: The company reported more qualified leads asking the right questions Furniture reps began referring them because they were “easy to work with and made them look good” They were shortlisted for larger, multi-phase projects due to increased confidence in their process But most importantly, they stopped competing on price — because they weren’t selling perfect workspaces anymore. They were selling peace of mind on installation day.
By Patrick McFadden March 8, 2025
Most marketing firms talk about tactics. We help our clients see the bigger picture.
More Posts