If you’re trying to grow a small business, one of your primary goals is to reach new customers – and convince them that you have just what they need. And these days, the best way to build a buzz about your business is via social media.
Here are 3 tips on how to use social media to boost your growth.
As a small business, a Facebook page can be an invaluable platform where you can share information about your business, news, special offers, and other information that will interest your audience. Even if you already have a website, a Facebook page can help you reach much wider audiences, and build a direct relationship with your customers.
A Facebook page is not the same as a personal profile – it’s a public page that anyone can follow and share. You can have any number of pages for your business (for example, one for each of your product lines or stores).
The key to making your Facebook page successful is to make it as complete and informative as possible. Provide product details and price lists, customer reviews, video demonstrations – and of course, a way for people to get in touch with you.
Enable messaging for your page, and make sure you respond quickly to comments and questions. By showing you value your customers’ input you’ll encourage others to interact with you.
Once you have a Facebook Page you can also join the 93% of marketers who regularly use Facebook Ads – a surprisingly affordable and effective way to spread the word about your business.
Shaun McGowan from business finance company Lend.com.au says “Facebook allows us to reach a new audience through its lookalike advertising feature at a much lower price point than other online channels”.
Visual content is hugely successful on social media – and it’s a highly effective marketing tool, because people remember 80% of what they see, compared to just 20% of what they read. It’s no surprise, then, that Instagram has become extremely popular with small businesses.
People are 10 times more likely to interact with a brand on Instagram than on Facebook – and Instagram’s Stories feature is a powerful way to boost engagement from your followers.
Like Facebook, Instagram provides business users with valuable analytics tools, so you can continually assess and refine your content strategy.
And if you’re looking for the best way to spend your marketing dollars, many small businesses are having excellent results with Instagram advertising.
Content schedulers
The number one rule of social media is that it is SOCIAL. Your Facebook or Instagram page shouldn’t be a static tool – post regular updates about your business, or share content (your own, or other people’s) that is relevant to your customers.
Of course, that’s a very time-consuming process – and the best time to catch the attention of your audience might be outside working hours, or when you’re flat out actually running your business.
That’s where content management tools like Hootsuite or Buffer can be invaluable. Prepare content in your own time, and then use a content scheduler to post it on each of your platforms at the optimum time, so you never miss a chance to make an impact.
If it all seems a bit overwhelming or too onerous you could employ a social media agency to do this work for you.
Written by: Toby Smith, Perth Western Australia