Using social media for your business isn’t as simple as having a personal Facebook or Twitter account. However, just as abstaining from social media in your personal life leaves you out of the loop on current trends, your business could suffer the same fate. To be effective, you need social media marketing campaigns. But why is social media marketing so important for your business?
Social Media is a Growth Mechanism
With the variety of tools available on the various social media platforms, you have huge opportunities to grow your market base. There are 3.8 billion users on social media, so there are no limits to the growth that you can experience. Whether you are targeting local markets or want to take your business globally, effective leverage of social media marketing can help you achieve those goals.
Customers Expect It
Current and potential customers have come to expect a social media presence from the companies they make their purchases from. One study found that 74% of consumers use social media to make buying decisions. If you do not have a solid presence on social media sites, you may be missing out on customers who rely on social media reviews to inform their choices.
No Presence Means Potential Client Loss
If you do not have an effective social media presence, you could be handing your business to competitors that do. Do not miss out on potential clients because they couldn’t view the customer reviews that would help them weigh your product or services against a competitor’s.
Branding Tool
Effectively utilizing the banner and profile images help to establish your visible brand. Potential and past customers will see your posts on social media, keeping your brand and imagery top-of-mind. This constant presence means that your business will be the first to think of when they are considering making a purchase.
Gain Insights
Social media has many tools for tracking and analytics. Because of this, you can track the efficacy of your social media activities. With accurate numbers, you can monitor which activities were effective and which didn’t help. You can also use tools to target the exact population you hope to reach. These metrics can also help to provide data to make long-term business decisions.
Social Media Best Practices
The points above explain why you should have a social media presence, but what are the best practices once you have your social media in place?
Have a Compelling Cover Photo
Your cover photo is the first thing people see when they look at your social media site. It is important that this cover photo not only supports your brand but includes a call to action that compels viewers to take action. Whether you are inviting them to visit your website, reach out to a staff member to learn more, or order a product, a compelling call to action helps to encourage potential customers to engage when they may not have otherwise done so. You should also use the cover photo to demonstrate high-level reviews and relevant awards that your company has received.
Post Frequently
It is not enough to have a social media presence. In fact, few things look worse than a social media account that appears unused. Social media algorithms rely on engagement and views on posts to determine which content should be made available. If you post content irregularly, you will likely get lost in these algorithms, and no one will see your content. Posting content frequently helps to boost your visibility and adds validity to your site. Daily posting is good if you have enough useful and relevant content to share. Do not be afraid of over-posting, as long as your content is relevant and useful to your viewers.
Curate Your Content
This leads us to the best practice of curating relevant content, applies to your brand, and is useful to your potential customers and viewers. Social media users enjoy viewing content from thought leaders, and with some work, you can fulfill that role for your industry. Carefully craft the content you post on social media to support your brand and the message you would like to portray.
Social media is an effective way to reach new customers and keep prior customers engaged in encouraging future business. Contact us to discuss how we can help your business to achieve its social media marketing goals today!
