Everyone knows what social media is, but not every business is taking advantage of it. Social media is the newest form of marketing, and it is quickly becoming the easiest way to get the word out about your brand.
Social media personalizes your brand and gives you an easy way to communicate with your customers in a relaxed and conversational manner. Customers are more likely to respond and interact with you if it’s in a venue they are familiar with. Social media is the best way to get direct, instant feedback from your customers. Most people check their social media accounts several times throughout the day, and social media posts are usually responded to within minutes.
Another reason to market your business on social media is the repeat exposure it allows you to have. You may have heard that it takes six to eight exposures to a product before a customer decides to buy it. Social media allows you to post several times a day to remind your followers about your company and what you have to offer.
Posting on social media is an easy way to get traffic back to your website. When you share content from your website, such as blog posts or photos, you give your followers a reason to click through to your site. Once they’re there make sure to keep them there with engaging content. You might also want to make sure that any call to action items are on the pages to which you are linking. Call to action items could include mailing list sign ups or buy it now buttons.
Social media gives you an advantage over your competition, because most companies aren’t very social media savvy and may not even have accounts. If you are consistent with your social media accounts, you have a distinct edge over them. You will be able to reach your target market in a way that they won’t, and that can translate into an increase in sales.
If you do decide to jump on the social media bandwagon, here are a few tips to get you started growing your social media presence:
- Keep your posts short and to the point. A good rule of thumb is to make them around 80 characters long. Shorter posts will make it easier to grab the attention of your followers. This is especially important on Twitter, where posts are limited to 140 characters, but it is definitely applicable to other social media networks.
- Do you best to make your posts shareable. Posts that are most likely to be shared are ones that spark conversations or contain humor or trivia. When your followers share your posts, they will be seen by many of their friends. This is a great away to market your business to new populations.
- Try to schedule your posts when your audience is not busy. The best time to do this is at night, when most people are done with work or school for the day. Another great time to post is around lunch time when most people will be on a break and checking their social media.
- Make sure any photos or videos you post are high quality. Quality photos immediately grab people’s attention. When posting photos, also think about including a description that shares humorous information or asks for opinions. This is a sure way to get your followers to comment.
- There is no better way to create engagement among your fans and followers than to interact with them. When you respond to comments, people will feel that their participation is valued and will be more likely to comment again or share your posts in the future.
- And finally, make sure you are consistent with your posts. If you don’t plan on updating your social media accounts regularly, you’re better off not having them at all. Businesses that don’t frequently post or respond to customer comments can seem lazy or unappreciative of their followers.
Now that you know the basics of social media marketing, give it a try yourself!
