It’s easy to see why social media has become such a commonplace promotional tool for countless small businesses. Most social platforms are free, easy to use and have user-bases that number into the millions. Provided you know your way around the web’s most popular platforms, you can bring your brand to the attention of scores of prospective customers. Conversely, if your social media experience leaves a lot to be desired, you may need to step up your game in order to maximize your promotional efforts.
Regularly Update Your Various Accounts
If you want to keep your existing followers engaged and expand your audience, it is imperative that you update your various social media accounts on a consistent basis. The less often you post, the more likely people are to lose interest in your brand or simply forget about it altogether. With this in mind, make a point of updating each of your business’s social media accounts daily. Additionally, take care to create multiple new posts each day. (Reusing posts across multiple accounts is perfectly fine, so you needn’t worry about creating a deluge of new content on a daily basis.)
You should also make sure to avoid posting too often. Spreading out your posts throughout the day will help prevent your followers from feeling inundated with content from your brand. While posting infrequently is unlikely to do you any favors, posting excessively is liable to get you blocked, ignored or outright unfollowed.
Create Engaging Posts
It isn’t simply enough to post new content on your social media accounts – the content itself must also be worthy of your audience’s time and attention. When setting out to create attention-grabbing posts, take care to include eye-catching images and avoid including text-walls. While most people aren’t exactly opposed to reading, not many social media users are going to stop and read a paragraph’s worth of text while scrolling through their feeds.
Your posts should also encourage sharing and be conducive to audience engagement. The more shares a post receives, the more people will become aware of your brand. Additionally, if a post is shared by a particularly large account, you can get a massive amount of exposure with a single click.
Respond to Follower Feedback
In addition to keeping in touch with family and friends, many of us like using social media to reach out to assorted brands and figures. Unsurprisingly, having a direct line to prominent companies and individuals holds a certain appeal to many social media users. Furthermore, the more responsive these brands and individuals are, the more valued the people who follow them feel.
As such, you should make an active effort to respond to as many questions and comments you receive on social media as possible. This will show your audience that their comments are appreciated, their concerns are important and their feedback is truly valued. You should also try to respond to comments and queries in the timeliest possible manner, particularly if they come through during normal business hours.
Work with Social Media Specialists
If social media marketing is largely an alien concept to you and your staff, you’d be wise to bring in some specialists. Working with a highly-rated web marketing company can give your social media efforts a much-needed shot in the arm and provide you with the tools you’ll need to enjoy long-term success on the web’s biggest social platforms. The right people will help you determine the most opportune times of day to post, the best subject matter for your posts and which platforms to focus the bulk of your efforts on. Additionally, if you’ve been wondering, “How much do Facebook ads cost?,” seasoned specialists will be able to provide the answers you seek.
Social media should play a large role in your small business’s marketing efforts. In addition to being user-friendly and cost-effective, the web’s biggest social platforms can make thousands of prospective patrons aware of your brand’s existence. Needless to say, some companies make better use of social media than others. So, if your small business falls into the latter category, you’d be wise to rectify this mistake posthaste. While embracing social media as a marketing tool can be a bit of an adjustment, it isn’t nearly as difficult as you may think.
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