Instagram Leads Small Business Searches on Social Media

Social media platforms, particularly Instagram, have emerged as significant channels for discovering services from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland. According to the "KMU Digital Pulse 2025" study by localsearch and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU), Instagram is the clear leader in SME service searches on social media, with 77% of social media users utilizing it.

Facebook follows at a distant second with 49%, and LinkedIn ranks third with 28%. Among younger users, under 30, TikTok has climbed to the third most popular platform, surpassing LinkedIn, highlighting generational differences in digital behavior. Young people under 30 are more than twice as likely (29%) to use social media for SME service searches compared to the general population (13%).

The study reveals that digital information about SME services is important to a large majority of the population (82%), particularly the 30-44 age group (91%). When Swiss individuals search for an SME, eight out of ten people (80%) primarily use a search engine like Google. Social media serves as the initial point of contact for only 13%.

Stefano Santinelli, CEO of localsearch, emphasizes that businesses absent or inactive on social media are missing out on valuable visibility and digital market potential. The study's findings confirm that social media is no longer just a source of inspiration and entertainment but a key tool for finding service providers. Instagram's dominance is particularly pronounced among young users (18-29), with 88% using the platform to search for SME services.