Small businesses are sending three million ‘tweets’ a day in the UK.

Small businesses are sending three million ‘tweets’ a day in the UK, according to a study on the usage of the free networking site Twitter by telecommunications company O2.

O2 questioned over 500 small businesses and found that nearly two in ten (17%) are using Twitter, with over one quarter (28%) signing up in the last four weeks.

It is estimated that 700,000 small companies in Britain are currently using it – 17% of the 4,559,000 small businesses in the UK that employ less than 20 people (source: Federation of Small Business); furthermore, O2 found that the number is growing at the rate of 6,000 a day.

For businesses, the focus is on cost-cutting, particularly on marketing and recruitment. It was cited by almost two thirds of the O2 sample. Over one in ten said they had saved up to £5,000 since signing up while three in ten reported benefits of up to £1,000. Almost 75% said they were using Twitter to stay in touch with customers and suppliers, while a third admitted they had signed up to monitor competitors’ Tweets.

Simon Devonshire, Head of Small Business Marketing at O2, said: “The way small businesses are using Twitter is a great example of how the community is embracing new technologies in order to adapt and survive in the current economic climate. The increase in small businesses using converged devices such as the iPhone and BlackBerry smartphones combined with the simplicity of Twitter represents a fantastic opportunity for businesses to further raise their profiles and increase efficiency.”

Despite its relative infancy, Twitter appears to be making its mark in the small business world over and above its social media competitors.

Four in ten small businesses revealed they are using Twitter more than LinkedIn or Facebook with 60% claiming their usage of the social networking site was likely to increase. Despite three times more businesses having a blog, nearly seven out of ten (68%) of those questioned admitted to using Twitter more regularly.

To sign up or find out more, visit: www.twitter.com.