Although they have been slower to get on board than their larger counterparts, one study finds small businesses are increasingly moving to online marketing at the expense of traditional media.

According to the latest report from the Kelsey Group, in the last 12 months, the penetration of online media for small businesses has increased from 73 percent in August 2008 to 77 percent this month.

Conversely, traditional media has seen its penetration drop over that same period – falling from 74 percent last year to 69 percent this month.

Steve Marshall, director of research at the Kelsey Group, says that while the study focused only on small- and medium-sized businesses, it is a good barometer of the feelings toward online media across the business community.

"We have been tracking the trend of digital/online media replacing traditional media over four waves of the Local Commerce Monitor study," he said. "The milestone of digital/online surpassing traditional media among SMBs is an indicator of the broad shift to online platforms."

It’s no secret that businesses are shifting their marketing dollars from traditional to online media. A report last month from Harris Interactive and LinkedIn found that 92 percent of companies said they use some form of online marketing while only 88 percent said they use print.

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