Small businesses around the world have marked their presence on social media as they know that social media platforms are here to stay. There are several advantages of having a social media presence. It helps businesses to engage with their audience, drive traffic, generate leads, build trust, and much more. Even if you have not yet cultivated your social media presence, it is time to change that. Below, we will discuss 10 ways by which small business owners like you can improve their social media presence.
1. Pick the right platform
Social media has expanded drastically in the last few areas, and there are thousands of platforms available for business users to connect with customers. So as a small business which one should you pick? As per experts, the choice of social media platform must depend on a businesses goals and target audience. Here are a few examples to choose from:
- Facebook
Facebook is the largest platform with 2.89 billion active users. This platform is ideal for anyone who wishes to generate leads and build relationships. - Twitter
Twitter is a perfect platform for businesses whose major audience is under 50. It will help your audience stay on top of time-sensitive information like breaking news, announcements, etc. - LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the largest social media platform for professionals to network. It can be used by both B2B and B2C businesses to create trust, engage with the audience, and build authority. - Instagram
Instagram boasts of nearly 1 billion global users making it an ideal platform to connect with your audience through videos and pictures. - Pinterest
The photo-sharing app is perfect for businesses with visual appeal. A few business examples include fashion, art, travel, wedding, photography, etc. - Snapchat
Snapchat is famously known as the expiring-content platform with a huge audience. It can be used to drive brand recognition and loyalty.
2. Set up a goal
Being consistent on social media has plenty of benefits for a small business. You can accomplish many things by improving your social media presence including engaging customers, expanding your audience, generating leads, driving sales, increasing web traffic, gaining valuable insights and feedback, and much more. To gain success on social media, a business needs to set up a goal.
A goal may help you stay on track and up your social media game. It is important for a business to know what they want to accomplish and in how much time.
3. Have a social media strategy in place
Once you have your social media goals set, the next step is to come up with a plan to get there. The first step is to identify people who will be part of the social media team. Post which each person will be designated a task along with their roles and responsibilities. It would ensure that everyone in the team is aware of what is expected from them.
As part of your social media strategy, you should also decide on your posting frequency. Take the help of social media planners to plan posts in advance and not miss days. Consider social media and marketing courses to gain more knowledge about how to build up social media strategy.
4. Leverage appropriate tools to schedule and automate posts
Staying active on social media is easier said than done. It takes a lot of time and effort to post frequently. As a small business owner, you would not want to miss out on days. There are plenty of automation tools available that can help you schedule a post up to a month in advance. These tools can help you save a lot of time and effort by allowing you to prepare and schedule a batch of posts in advance. You can use the time saved in engaging with the audience and growing your network.
5. Actively engage with your audience
We have made it very clear that posting consistently on social media is important for your growth as a small business. But you cannot just post on social media and walk away, to improve your social media presence it is equally essential to engage with your audience. Create content that resonates with your audience and opens up the floor for discussion. Respond to queries and be swift while addressing customer concerns. It will help you build and gain the trust of your audience. Several ways that can be used to engage with your audience includes comments or posts, sharing relevant information, addressing complaints, showing appreciation towards customers, sharing user-generated content, participating in conversation, etc.
6. Be consistent with your presence and brand voice
One thing that small business owners must ensure is to maintain consistency in terms of brand voice and personality. It might get difficult if you have multiple people working on the social media content. To combat the problem limit the number of people involved. Every post should be in line with the brand and image. Effectively using automation tools can also help in increasing efficiency and reducing items. It would help you be present on social media even when you’re not. Ideally, social media users must not post more than two times a day.
These tools will help you in social media
7. Promote less, engage more
One thing that businesses must remember while taking steps to improve their social media steps is that it should not only be about sales, sales, and sales. An 80/20 rule should be followed where 20% of the content posted by the business should contain promotions and the rest 80% must be what the audience demands. It could be informational posts, questions and answers, addressing FAQs, etc. Rather than using social media as a promotional platform, businesses must consider it as a tool to drive engagement and conversations around their brand.
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8. Enrol in marketing courses to enhance your knowledge
Constant learning is another growth hack for small businesses to improve their social media presence. The social media scene is always evolving and along with that your customers. There is a need for business users to step up their game and keep pace with their audience. A great way to do this is by enrolling in a social media marketing course that will teach you all aspects of driving business success through social media. Gain more knowledge about how each platform works, how to engage your audience, how to generate leads, how to promote your brand, and much more.
9. Track your progress through analytics
Keep a check on your progress by watching the right metrics. Before tracking your metrics, it is a much better step to first define your goals, locate your target audience, and pick the platforms that are relevant to you. Do not try to be present on all the platforms. Your metrics will let you know if you are heading in the right direction. The analytics section is also great to understand your audience better by knowing their gender, age group, and location. Try to understand what type of content is gaining more engagement and keep posting what the audience likes.
10. Keep your audience in mind
Knowing your audience is essential to creating and improving your social media presence as a small business. The interest and needs of your audience will help you determine the kind of content that you should be posting on your social media. If you are not sure about your audience, go to the analytics section and see which type of posts gained more engagement in the past. It would help you create a better content strategy for next time. Also remember, no matter who your audience is, your content should always be of high quality.
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