It’s 2020, and safe to say most of the target audience for your business is on social media. There are over 2 billion Facebook users, +700 million Instagram users, and +300 million Twitter users, not to mention the array of other social media outlets like TikTok and Linkedin. Just being on social media isn’t enough in anymore, you’ve got to have a plan and a strategy, because this presence includes your customer base and those that are your potential customers. Social media is a no-brainer and a great marketing tool that with a bit of effort and a plan, can really help your business thrive.
Here are six tips for making your social media mark as a small business:
1. Have a plan
Every smart business strategy starts with a plan. Decide what your goal is with your social media – is it to drive customers to your website? Build relationships with past customers? Showcase your products or services? Ideally, these will all be encompassed in whatever you do on your social media. Set aside some time to decide your goals and how you want to prioritize your posting. Look into what your competition is doing and note what’s working for them and what you think could use improvement. Creating a social media calendar with holidays, special anniversaries, or time sensitive deals can also help keep you organized when it comes to your small business social media strategy.
2. Know your audience
If you own a gym you’re going to target users who are interested in health and wellness. If you have a daycare center, then you’re going to want to target parents within your area. No matter what type of business you own, there’s a target market for you. One of the best things about social media is the ability to curate content that is specific for your micro-targeted audience. Taking it a step further into social media boosted posts and ads, when you pay to promote your posts, you are able to specific filters that will help draw the right consumers to your page.
3. Build relationships with your followers
You’ve got the plan and you’ve got the audience, now it’s time to keep them interested. Social media is about connecting and creating relationships. A major part of being successful on social media is community management and keeping your following engaged and actively communicating with them. Make sure to spend a few minutes each day responding to comments or questions, liking responses, and interacting personally with the pages that interact with you. The more your followers get to know you, the more they trust you and are likely to believe in your brand and/or services. This will lead to them not only becoming loyal clientele, but will also get them to share your business with their friends and family.
4. Think out of the box
Social media should never be a cookie cutter process. In order for your small business to stand out you’re going to have to think outside of the box. Quality over quantity is very important in this case. This goes back to scoping out your competition – what do you like about their social media strategy and what do you think they could work on? What catches your eye from accounts that you follow (whether they are in the same field of business as you or not)? Use bits and pieces of things that inspire you to create content for your small business that will stand out to those who are looking at what you have to offer.
5. Focus on customer service
Much like building relationships, great customer service can stem from a solid social media plan for your small business. Social media users want to be heard and engaged with. Most users are turning to social media to ask questions about businesses rather than a traditional phone call or email. In doing this, they expect a fairly quick response and if your social media strategy is on point, then your small business is likely to gain a loyal follower and customer.
6. Analyze and reevaluate regularly
So now you’ve got your plan and figured out what kind of audience you want to target. The good news is: you’re on the right track. The bad news is: this could all change in a matter of months. The world of social media is constantly growing and evolving, meaning your social media plan needs to do the same. Schedule some time monthly or bi-monthly to look into your social media analytics to see what posts performed well and what was lacking. Reevaluate and try new styles of posts or deals or interactions to see what will peak the interest of your followers. Come up with fresh ideas to keep your customers engaged and interested in what your small business has to offer.
As a small business owner, social media can seem a bit scary, time consuming, and a lot to handle – but you don’t have to do it all on your own. Consider hiring a digital marketing agency to help you run your social media. At Miss Ink, we pride ourselves on knowing the latest and greatest in the world of social media. If your business needs a little help with caption writing, planning, or even the full gamut of posting, responding, and running all social media outlets – we’ve got a plan that’s just right for you and your small business.
