Social media is a powerful tool for any business, but the way you use it can make or break your success. If social networking isn't done correctly with strategy and planning from day one then there are many barriers that will prevent you from driving potential customers to your business and building your brand awareness on the social networking sites.
Many small to medium-sized business owners simply feel they don't have enough time to spend on social media or are unsure about where they should start, which is probably why nearly 40% of small businesses still don't use social media as a marketing strategy. With so many social media sites out there now, it's hard to know which platform is best for your business and we don't believe you should be on all social media platforms, simply for the sake of it, but you should be on the ones where your target audience is.
So, if you're confused about social media and how it can help your business grow? Well, you're not alone.
If you're one of those businesses that don't see the benefits of using social media or are simply struggling to get started, then keep reading. Social media has become an essential platform for businesses of all sizes to reach and engage with their target audience. It offers numerous benefits that can help businesses grow and succeed in today's digital age.
First and foremost, social media allows businesses to increase their brand visibility and awareness. With billions of people using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, businesses have the opportunity to reach a vast audience. By creating a strong online presence and sharing valuable content, businesses can attract potential customers and build a loyal following.
Furthermore, social media provides businesses with a cost-effective marketing strategy. Unlike traditional advertising methods, social media marketing allows businesses to promote their products or services at a much lower cost. Businesses can create targeted advertisements and reach a specific audience based on their demographics, interests, and behaviours. This level of targeting ensures that businesses are reaching the right people with their marketing messages, increasing the chances of converting them into paying customers.
Other benefits of social media marketing include:
Driving traffic to your website
Promoting products and services
Building relationships with your current and potential customers, as well as customer loyalty
Keeping tabs on your competitors and helps with competitor research
Use social media to help gather data and information about what your audience is looking for or needs from your brand
Use your social media profiles to provide responsive customer service
As you have read, social media offers numerous benefits for businesses that are looking to expand their reach and grow their customer base. From increasing brand visibility and awareness to providing a cost-effective marketing strategy, social media has become an essential tool in today's business landscape. So, if you're one of those businesses that haven't embraced social media yet, it's time to reconsider and start reaping the benefits it brings.
Let's talk about social media campaigns, after all this is where the real fun begins! There are a number of things to keep in mind when building your campaign, but the first step should be understanding the end goal. So, what do you want to get out of the post you're about to create? As we mentioned above, there are a number of goals, so make sure it is clearly articulated, while still being engaging and share-worthy. Once you've got a clear idea of your social media campaign, make sure the content is applicable to your audience. Everyone knows social media users are incredibly fickle creatures (just ask Donald Trump), so take this into account when you're building your campaign!
Next, you want to decide on the type of content you'll need for each social channel because different platforms attract different audiences. You might create a short video for YouTube and Facebook and an eye-catching image and tag line for Instagram and Twitter.
Let's break this down a little further!
Gen Z (zoomers) - 18 to 25 year olds are the first generation to spend their lives with the internet in thei back pocket, so how they consume content is different to the other generations. They tend to spend more time on TikTok. Snapchat and instagram are also popular, and everyone uses YouTube. Gen Z also are more likely to trust social media influencers more than traditional celebrities. This gorup also considers social media to be an essential part of their lives and social media usage continues to climb. They respond more to pictures and video.
Millennials - 26 to 41 will pretty much be found on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. The other platforms such as Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok sit between 29% - 52%. This group are generally using social media to connect with their peers, family and the world around them first and foremost. Around 47% are using social media to learn about new trends and 41% to get breaking news stories. About 75% of Millennials feel that social media enables them to connect with brands and companies online, so does make marketing and building connections to this generation easier.
Gen X - 42 to 57 started using social media right alongside Millennials and usage for this generation isn't slowing down. About 74% feel that social media is an essential part of their life and when it comes to platform preference YouTube and Facebook win hands down. You can pretty much say that this group is more likely to stick to social channels they know than branch out to newer platforms like TikTok. This group have a lot of natural self-starters and they value independence. More importantly, thay have a ton of purchasing power online. A seemingly forgotten generation (probably because they bridge the gap between baby boomers and millennials aka the middle child) use the internet to research businesses - in fact about 72%. About 56% will learn about new brands on social media and actually value the extra research opportunities a brand's active social media presence gives them. Video how-to's and video tutorials are a great way to reach this generation and once you've earned their loyalty it is hard to loose. So it's time to stop ignoring Gen X.
Boomers - 58 to 67 love YouTube more than Facebook. This group is less likely to view social media as an essential part of their lives, with a majority using it to stay connected to family and friends. This group is still more likely to purchase in-store than online, however, after the past couple of years when social distancing and separation became a big part of everyone's life, this generation's use of social media is increasing and expect this trend to continue. About 35% will use social media to discover new brands and about 48% will interact with brands via social media. This generation is less likely to try new platforms and tends to prefer communicating with businesses on the platforms they are already using in their lives.
We all love visuals but words are especially important when trying to connect with boomers, Gen X and Millennials.
Customer Engagement Communication Content Generation Creativity
Adaption Actions Incentives Interaction
Research has shown that customers who engage with a brand on social media are three times more likely to remain loyal to that brand. People are not using social media for one-way experiences, they are looking to connect, otherwise without the engagement social media is just like any other form of media. So from likes, shares and favourites to the holy grail of DM's, replies and mentions we want your audience engaging with your content and your business.
Social media allows us to connect and engage with potential customers where they are at. As a business, you want to share your story with a highly engaged audience in a creative way. Your target market helps us to set the tone, design style, post-planning, and content creation to build human relationships, generate and nurture leads by creating meaningful conversations and implement social listening. You want to know what people are saying about your brand, as this gives you the opportunity to improve and show your audience that you care.
Certain social media platforms allow for different types of content to be delivered to your audience. We want to help you design rich and unique, on brand content that is interesting and engaging to your audience aka potential customers. This could mean that we help you manage a written/video blog or develop compelling information, such as stories, reels, videos, written posts, infographics, images etc to publish on your social media platforms to build long-lasting relationships. Using social media for customer care is also beneficial and can in fact increase your customer advocacy by at least 25%.
We get it. You have a lot of responsibilities, and being creative with your social media campaigns is important for engagement. That's why we have an experienced team of professionals who are ready to help you stay on point with your social media campaigns. You want your audience to remember you, so the more effective your social media campaign is and the more they see you the more likely they will remember you... and the more likely they purchase from you.
When we talk about social networking adaptation we are looking at creating and engaging in satisfying social interactions. Ultimately it is all about engaging in conversation with your current and potential consumers and how they engage with the social media platform that they are on. One of the biggest sins of social media marketing is the cross-posting of content without adapting it to the requirements and features of the different social networks. What works for Twitter, won't necessarily work for Facebook and Instagram and so on... In fact with Instagram, because of the way it is designed, the overall feel of the quality visual content on your feed needs to be homogeneous for you to better engage with your audience.
Besides the actions you want your visitors to take such as like, follow and the holy grail of sharing your content, there are actions you should take too. Who is your audience? It's good to research them, as you can't build a following without knowing who you are trying to attract. When defining who your audience is don't just look at the superficial buyer persona, but make sure to include motivations, pain points and inspirations. Make sure you are listening, which we have mentioned before. Social listening is not just a fancy marketing buzzword. Use it to track brand mentions, your competitors, specific keywords and so on, then if you're faced with any negative issues online you can dig into why, get ahead of the problem and nip it in the bud. Other actions can include asking your audience for feedback, using your social media pages as customer service channels, responding promptly to DMs and comments, auditing your social media presence, and understanding the hashtags use and how to use them appropriately. There are many actions that come into play and having a good social media presence is a must when building trust online in today's business environment.
Long gone are the days when customers were only passive consumers of marketing content, with social media, customers are now involved in varying levels of social media engagement from simply consuming content to interacting by liking, sharing and commenting to then being co-creators of brand messages. It is not a simple hop, skip and jump from consuming to co-creating, there is a lot of work involved in building your brand and in getting your audience to engage with you, unless of course if you are a celebrity. As an engaging tactic, some incentives can be sharing your knowledge (as an expert in your field), creating exclusive offers, hosting special events, having an affiliate program, showing gratitude by acknowledging your fans and being generous by giving away some free stuff, which can also spread the word about your products and services.
With social media interaction, it is best to think about your social media page as a two-way street. The conversation will flow both ways, so how you interact with your customers, especially the unhappy ones, will have a huge impact on customer satisfaction and continued engagement with your brand. I don't know about you, but when I read a review on a product I am thinking of buying, I look more closely at how the company has responded to the review - good or bad than I am at the actual review. Having positive social interactions can increase sales, have people choose your brand over your competition, have your audience recommend your brand, have customers increase their spending with your business and develop a stronger bond with your brand. Sounds pretty good, huh?
We want to make getting social as easy as possible for you
At Select Marketing & Web Solutions, we want to alleviate any concerns you may have about utilising social media marketing for your business and to make "getting social" as easy as possible for you.
We can be involved at many different levels of your social media marketing and can help you with:
Like you, we're a small business too, which means being flexible is important. No one size fits all when it comes to marketing your business on social media and we want to work with you to help your business connect and build meaningful relationships with your audience. We can help you grow and engage on the following social media platforms including Google My Business:
Growing an audience and increasing online engagement with social media requires a strategic approach. Here are some of the steps we use to help you achieve these goals:
Firstly, we will clearly define your target audience, including demographics, interests, and behaviours. Understanding your audience is key to creating content that resonates with them.
We want to focus on the social media platforms where your target audience is most active. Different platforms cater to different demographics and interests.
Next, we will set up your profiles if you don't have them and if you do, we will ensure your social media profiles are complete and visually appealing. Use high-quality profile pictures and cover photos, and write compelling bios.
Now we want to maintain a consistent visual and messaging style across all your social media profiles. This helps in building brand recognition.
Create a content calendar with a mix of content types, such as text, images, videos, and stories. Ensure your content is valuable, informative, entertaining, or inspiring to your audience.
If we are managing your social media then the next step is to respond promptly to comments, messages, and mentions. Engaging with your audience shows that you value their input and builds a stronger connection.
It's good to remember that building a substantial audience and increasing engagement does take time. Be patient as we will always be persistent in our efforts to achieve your goals.
We will use social media analytics tools to track the performance of your posts. Identify what's working and adjust your strategy accordingly. Each month we will provide you with a report on your social media campaign.
Paid Advertising:
Depending on your budget we also look at incorporating paid advertising campaigns on your social media platforms to coincide with your organic feed. This can help you reach a larger, targeted audience.
User-Generated Content:
We will look at strategies that encourage your followers to create and share content related to your brand. User-generated content can be powerful for building trust and credibility.
Use Hashtags:
Incorporate relevant hashtags into your posts to increase discoverability. Research popular and niche hashtags related to your content.
Collaborate with Influencers:
Help you partner with influencers in your niche to reach a broader audience. Influencers can help promote your content, products and services, however, this is not for everyone and really depends on your budget as the cost involved will be determined by the level of influence the influencer has on the platform.
Run Contests and Giveaways:
We can help you organise contests or giveaways with attractive prizes to encourage engagement and shares, which is a great way to help you increase your reach.
A/B Testing:
Experiment with different types of content, posting times, and messaging to see what resonates best with your audience. A/B testing can help refine our strategy for your business.
Measure ROI:
Track the return on investment for your social media efforts. We want to understand which strategies are generating the most value for your brand.
Collaborate with Others:
We will help you collaborate with other businesses or individuals in your niche for cross-promotions or joint campaigns. This can help you tap into each other's audiences.
Social media success doesn't happen overnight. It is also a marketing strategy that requires continuous effort, creativity, and adaptability to keep your audience engaged and growing. So, if you don't have the time and patience to succeed on social media, then give us a call or email our team to organic a chat about improving your social media presence and engagement with your audience today.