I love prognosticators! It’s the end of the year and now’s the time when all the predictions are coming in. I don’t really care what Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer are up to (it’s OK if you do… No judgment from me) but give me some insight on small business trending and I’m all over that…

So it is on that note that I would like to share with you this great article form Small business Labs called: 2009 Top 10 Small Business Trends. The article is very timely considering that some economists estimate that as much as 95% of our economy is driven by small businesses.

However, it is number 10 on the 2009 small business trends list that caught my attention:

10. Small Businesses Will Expand Their Use of Online Marketing Tools: Despite the economic downturn, we expect the small business sector to increase its use of online marketing tools and methods in 2009. Online marketing is cheaper and often more effective than traditional approaches. And although online marketing can be complex, many tools and methods are accessible to DIY small business marketers. With small businesses focused on customer acquisition and re-defining their business methods, we expect their use of online marketing to grow in 2009.

Since those in the know realize that online marketing can be far less costly than traditional forms of marketing. Do newspaper ads really get people into your store? The answer: Yes, but… Of course offline marketing works - but even in a small market a newspaper ad might cost several hundred dollars.

If you take into account that a full 50% of your potential customers are looking for your small business online - What if you could be the first option they see when they are looking for your type of product or service online? Well, you probably can!

Utilizing the vast resources of the internet as well as variations of what savvy Internet Marketers use - yes indeed you can. Internet Marketing is a business and chances are you’re not in the internet marketing business. So, would it make sense for you to become a full time internet marketer? NO! You need time to run, maintain and grow your small business.

That being said, there is a lot you can do to market your small business online and chances are that your competition is not.

By blogging, social networking, social bookmarking, even strategically placed video, you can increase your presence on Google and on the web in general.

Hone your message, create multiple gateways to your web presence online, perform great customer service, and watch your small business grow.

Great interview on Forbes,com with John McCrea, head of marketing for Plaxo, which manages 40 million online address books, to learn why entrepreneurs need to get into the game, how to do it and where this is all going.

John McCrea: There are a few phases to social networking. The first phase was Friendster, MySpace and clones and it was pretty frivolous. Everyone connected as a friend. Strangers came together online. The second phase was about who you knew, maintaining and enriching your relationships. It was a way not to lose touch with people as you changed jobs or moved. The latest phase is an online representation of real world activity. Small and midsize businesses were always people who spent money on their Rolodexes and then on database software. They survive and thrive based on the power of personal networks.

I’ll point to Plaxo as a network address book and “Pulse” as an online service as examples. Plaxo was a precursor to an Internet-based service and it’s composed of members keeping up their contact information on their “implied profile page.” Even then, many users would share birthdates and would get e-mails about who changed jobs, whose birthday it is, etc. It allowed people to connect and send flowers on a birthday or congratulate someone on a new job. It made networking stuff easier to do and made a smaller businessperson appear well organized and thoughtful. Pulse brings the address book to life. Users can connect up with different services on the Web. They can share postings on Flickr or a blog, where getting an audience can be hard.

Truly it is about starting a relationship first. Nothing is more annoying than the guy (or gal) who upon the first meeting immediately bombards you info about the latest and greatest network marking company etc… Get to know me first is my policy.

Getting to know your customers and/or potential customers is the fiirst step in discovering their needs and how you can best assist them, solve their problem or ease their pain.

The Business Value Of Social Networking - Forbes.com.