How to Boost Your Small Business With Social Media Marketing
How to Boost Small Business With Social Media Marketing
When you have a small business, it can be hard to wrap you head around just where your social media marketing efforts should go. Here are your answers.
Keyword(s): social media marketing
The average small business owner has a lot on their plate.
You have to be your own accountant and make sure that money is coming in. You need to be HR and have to handle hiring people and managing employees.
On top of it all, you have to be your own marketer and make sure that you’re always spreading the word about your business.
Luckily for you, social media marketing is a simple and effective way to market your company.
Why you need social media marketing
You’ve no doubt heard about how helpful social media marketing can be for businesses of any size. After all, the proof is in the numbers.
Sixty percent of small business owners claim that they’ve found new customers through social media. Since the platforms are so easy to use and an effective outreach tool, you can’t afford to not be on social media.
If you’re new to social media marketing there are a few things you need to know before you start your own campaign.
Be on the right platform
One of the most important parts of social media marketing is platform use. Some sites are better than others for sharing certain kinds of content.
Spend your time on platforms that make the most sense for your business.
Some people go overboard when they start using social media to market their small business. They sign up for every platform they can think of. That mistake could end up hurting you in the long run.
Pinterest is a great site for creative minds. It’s perfect for sharing content about fashion, food, and beauty. It would be the perfect platform for an up and coming stylist or a chef, but it wouldn’t be great for a plumber or electrician.
Think about your audience
How would you describe your average customer?
Some people would envision a 40-something white-collar worker that has a family. Others may describe a young adult that loves tech.
Understanding your customers will make it easier to target to them. Take some time to sketch out a user persona for your business. It’ll help make your social media marketing much more effective.
Post consistently
Don’t you hate it when you find a great blog or website that all of the sudden stops updating?
Your followers will feel the same way if you post great content then stop suddenly.
People like consistency with their social media. You should too. Scheduling content ahead of time can help make sure that your audience always has something to see.
To start out, try posting content during times people are likely to be online. Right before work (around 9 am), around lunch time (around noon), and before bedtime are popular browsing times (after 9pm).
After a little bit of time passes, look into your audience’s behavior so you can post at the right time.
Think local
A small business owner is going to want to reach as many people as possible on social media.
When you set targeting for your Facebook page or ad targeting on a paid campaign, it’s much more effective to refine your terms instead of casting as big of a net as possible.
If you’re strictly a brick and mortar location, don’t to try to target for people that live 30 miles away. It would be much more effective to target people in your town and the immediate surrounding area.
You don’t want to aim too far when you’re setting locations, but you should go broad for interests. If you specialize in baking, target people that look to cook and go out to eat. If you’re a contractor, target people that love DIY work.
Don’t forget about review sites
Websites like Yelp and TripAdvisor aren’t technically considered social media. But, they should still be a part of your social media marketing plan. Monitor websites where reviews are posted to see what customers are saying about you.
Don’t be shy about responding to what they say, regardless of if it’s good or bad. Sometimes just thanking someone for their review can be as effective as responding to a negative one.
Also, make sure that your information is correct on sites like Yelp and in Google.
People visit those websites to learn about your business. If your contact information and services aren’t correct (or are simply not there) you could lose out on attracting new customers.
Promote sales and products
Sales may seem like an obvious use of social media, but some people neglect to do it in the right way.
There’s nothing wrong with posting a status whenever you have a sale or want to promote something. But leaving it as a simple update means you’re missing out on reaching more people.
Set up targeted ads every time you want to promote something for your business. If you’d rather do something quick, boost a post on Facebook so you can practice targeting before you commit to an ad campaign.
Switch up your campaigns
While we’re on the topic of targeting and ads, we should get into the kind of ad content you should post.
Don’t just set up one ad and leave it up indefinitely. You should be trying out different text and pictures to see which ones resonate with your audience the most. You could even go beyond the typical picture and text format and create a video ad.
This simple act is actually a powerful marketing tool known as A/B testing. Professionals use this to measure the success of their ads, and also helps them think of new and creative ways to promote content.
Don’t forget the word “social”
It’s great to regularly post content and to always be thinking about new ways to grow your audience. But if you simply focus on posting and ads, you’re missing out on one of the best advantages of social media.
Social media marketing is unique because it’s the only form of marketing that lets you directly interact with your audience. An ad on television can’t answer potential customer’s questions, but an active social media account could.
Don’t just let your customer’s comments or tweets sit around. Reply to them – or simply “like” them!
That small amount of engagement helps humanize your brand and lets your followers know that you’re paying attention to them.
Do you still have some questions about social media marketing? Contact us so we can chat!
