Behind any successful business is an extensive network and one of the most effective ways of generating a good following is through the use of social media. It’s no secret that a majority of the people spend countless hours on various platforms. With this kind of traffic it’s easy to assume that it’s all about posting and getting your content out there however, it’s a lot more complicated than that. You have to know the intricacies of using social media for business marketing to increase the chances of viewership and patronage.
Develop a Plan First
Using social media for your business requires a lot of planning. Like any form of marketing it requires a solid strategy to increase awareness or your following. List down your goals for your chosen platform and demographic and then you can begin to take the necessary steps towards it. Not having a strategy can waste lots of times and good content that could be to much better use.
Listen to Your Audience
One of the major benefits of social media for business is interaction with your following. You’ll be able to get useful feedback and criticism which will help you figure out what works for your target demographic. It will also make planning out your content a lot easier as you’ll have a clear idea of what people want to see from you.
While posting and following a constant schedule helps build discipline and increases your traffic, you have to be careful about what and how much you post. Avoid being labelled as spam as it can really harm your business. No one wants their feed flooded by a constant influx of advertisements so you must be very careful as it can even cause people to unfollow you or to hide your posts. Manage your post schedule wisely and you’ll also increase anticipation for your next update.
Provide Tips and Information
One of the best ways to actually increase traffic is to post valuable content. Put out relevant or helpful information your viewers really want to see. Make useful guides, insightful reviews or anything with substance so that people will actually feel the need to receive constant updates. This is where prior planning comes into fruition as it’s easier to decide on content if you have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. A good tip would be to generally post something that you personally would want to see as a consumer.
Keep it Short
Most people barely take the time to view one post for long periods of time. Most people just scroll or skim everything they see so you have to be sure what you share is straight to the point. One of the benefits of social media marketing is how streamlined it is, so make clear and concise posts as no one has time to read a wall of text. Good graphic design can go a long way in regards to this as it’s designed to make absorbing information a lot faster and it definitely improves the presentation of your content.
Encourage Sharing
Once you have generated a bit of a following, it’s important to get them involved in building and growing your network. Encourage or even incentivize people to share your posts through your content. Making something relatable or relevant is very beneficial to your business as you increase your audience reach and it encourages them share it within their own circles. This can have an exponential effect on your efforts, especially if one of your posts goes viral.
Business is often viewed as a highly competitive and that can be true to some extent. However, using social media for your business means being part of a virtual community. You’ll be working closely with both potential partners and competitors. A great way of building professional and mutually beneficial connections is through sharing other content. Just make sure it’s still relevant to yours.
Test the Best
Careful planning while indeed necessary can only do so much. There are a lot of factors you can’t really account for until you’ve started venturing into this kind of marketing platform. Try out a lot of different things and find what works for you and your audience. Don’t stick to what you’re comfortable with or what you hear from others. It’s always great to experiment especially during the early days of your online profile. Learn and grow from your experiences and failures to find your niche.
Follow Your Competitors
Again since most of your potential competitors are probably thinking the same thing, you should also keep tabs on their course of action. Knowing what they’re doing can help set you apart and learn from their mistakes. You might also be able to draw inspiration from what they’re doing. Now this doesn’t mean that you simply copy what works. It’s about finding the secret to others success and making it your own. Use their ideas as fuel for your own.
Choose Your Social Media Platform Carefully
One of the things most people don’t realize is while practically everyone has an account on various social media platforms, they don’t spend equal time on each and every one. One of the benefits of social media for business is being able to target a specific demographic. You’ll have to be conscious of this since different people often frequent social media sites that fit their needs. Whether it be art, news, entertainment, or any other point of interest, each social media platform attracts different people. You’d also have to consider the interface you’ll be using as there are limitations depending on the platform regarding images, text, coding, and most importantly their terms of service.
There are a lot of reasons and benefits to join the rat race and put your company profile out there. It’s always a good move to increase your shareability and to grow your fan base. Good social media strategy can help grow your business to new heights and provide one of the best ROIs in marketing.
