LIVE from the Facebook Community Boost event

Delegates this afternoon have heard thattechnology is, increasingly, the gateway to global growth, as the internet has opened up vast new markets for British businesses to export to. And Facebook, with its 2.27 billion monthly active users, is a wonderful way for SMEs to find new customers around the world.

Some 1.2 billion Facebook users are connected to businesses in another country, for example, and 30% of SMEs on Facebook have followers from other nations. Sorcha Diggin, small business account manager at Facebook, said: “Businesses today can be borderless. We find where your customers are and make sure we get adverts in front of them.”

The Department for International Trade said that 400,000 businesses reckon they could export but do not, and that products and services exported by UK businesses accounted for 30% of GDP last year. What’s more, exporting can be a safeguard against domestic uncertainty, and sterling’s battering since the 2016 Brexit vote has boosted British exports.

Facebook’s advertising platform helps businesses target industries, audiences and countries to sell goods or services to in multiple languages. It also helps them build brand awareness through videos and other digital content. “If you’ve never been in a new region, brand awareness is a good way to start,” Diggin said.

Katie Massie-Taylor used Facebook to grow Mush, her local social networking business for mums, to have hundreds of thousands of users. In 2015 the company also raised £250,000. “Facebook has been an amazing channel to fill in the gaps and have good coverage around the world,” Massie-Taylor told the Community Boost audience.

In-between the captivating panel discussions, delegates could discover an array of support for their businesses on levels 28 and 29 of the Millbank Tower overlooking the Thames and Parliament. Advisers from the Federation of Small businesses, Start Up Loans Company, and the Department for International Trade manned booths where attendees could get advice, information or pose questions.

Over jerk chicken wraps and chorizo sandwiches at lunch, the entrepreneurs could also sign up for Facebook Blueprint: an online learning platform with over 90 courses.

Technology is very much at the heart of today’s event, so it was fitting that a raft of digital tools were on display for attendees to tinker with. On level 29, an Oculus Rift headset was available and equipped with a range of games to help the entrepreneurs familiarise themselves with one of the most disruptive technologies around.

Elsewhere, demonstrations of how to use Instagram’s various photographic and video features were going on, and there was also a “creative shop” equipped with tablet devices to help people edit their content via Facebook’s family of applications.

Social media is, in essence, about building and strengthening communities — and delegates from today’s event heard this afternoon that this is a boon for SMEs. Many of them are using Facebook groups to drive customer engagement, promote their brand and ultimately grow their business.

But Kalyn Sheehan, SMB account manager at Facebook, said the groups are less about making sales and more about creating great conversations on issues that really matter to consumers. “Facebook groups allow you to build a community, drive conversations, get feedback or educate your audience,” she told the audience. “It’s a safe place to figure out what really matters to them.”

Anyone with a Facebook business page can create a group through their homepage, which is separate to their personal account. Once established, you can appoint moderators and admins to help screen content and new users, and change the group’s privacy settings.

The first step to creating a thriving online community that delivers invaluable insight into the motivations and interests of consumers, is to establish a clear mission. “Make sure your group understands what you are trying to accomplish,” Sheehan said.

A community is nothing without people, so encouraging your members to invite their friends is a good way to build up an initial user base. Once it’s up and running, content is king. Posting questions and using Facebook polls and charts, or organising events are Sheehan’s top tips for growth and engagement. “And make sure you comment on posts from your members so they know that you’re paying attention,” she told the Community Boost event.  

Women entrepreneurs need better access to finance, prominent role models and individual support, says Louise Stewart, at the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). “When women work together, great things can happen.”

She was addressing women entrepreneurs attending the groundbreaking Facebook initiative #SheMeansBusiness, which aims to inspire and support UK business women.

“It’s about connections – they really matter,” says Philippa Snare, chief marketing officer at Facebook (EMEA). “Since the programme began in 2016, we’ve helped 20,000 women start their own business in the UK. These are big numbers and we just want them to grow.”

Women owned and led businesses now contribute £221 billion to the UK economy, according to new FSB research. “More women are choosing to set up their own businesses than ever before, more women are running businesses and more women are employing other people,” says Stewart. “But there’s much more to be done.”

Women owned businesses employ 2.9 million people in the UK and account for 23.85 per cent of private sector employment, she says.

But currently just one in five of the UK’s five million or more small businesses in the UK are founded by women, says Snare – they’re not setting up enterprises at the same rate as men.

#SheMeansBusiness aims to reset the balance, and the programme has supported thousands of women with advice, marketing know how and resources. Women entrepreneurs say they’re more optimistic about growth if they belong to supportive business communities, research commissioned by Facebook shows.

“But there’s still much to do,” says Snare. “We will keep momentum going and continue to roll out the programme over the next few years, training and exciting women about being successful in business.”

Women entrepreneurs need to be tough – and know when to call for help, says award-winning business strategist Melanie Eusebe, who launched The Black British Business Awards. She should know. She’s been abused by Twitter trolls after a television news interview.

“You are not alone, even as an entrepreneur, you have a community.” As well as nurturing support networks, women need to seek out positive stories.  “When you are in a dark place, remind yourself that people value you.”

Remember too, she says, that some of the most successful business leaders have experienced setbacks. “Steve Jobs was fired from his own company,” she says. “To know the light, you have to know the dark.”

Today’s women entrepreneurs have an important role to play, says Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation, which has partnered with Facebook on the #SheMeansBusiness programme.

“Sheryl Sandberg said ‘when women succeed we all succeed’. Women who start their own businesses are also educating the next generation of entrepreneurs.”

Women starting businesses need peer support, but they also need a dose of inspiration from those a few years down the line. And the #SheMeansBusiness programme will continue into 2019 and beyond, says Jones.

To date, the initiative has trained more than 20,000 female entrepreneurs in the UK. “Facebook is very committed,” she says. “The sentiment is there to build on economic empowerment and training. The more we can tell our stories, the more we can be role models for the future.”