When it comes to marketing a small business, free tools are always a great place to start! Social media is one of the most common tools used by small businesses to get word out about products or services, build a community of clients, and set fire to word of mouth marketing, but if not used strategically the impact can be little to none. Even though you may not be paying a monthly subscription, making an impact on social media takes time and as we all know- time is money (especially for a small business owner!).
So, here are some tips on how to effectively use social media to market your businesses.
Video content is King (or Queen 👑) on social media
If you’re on social media for personal use, you’ve probably noticed the switch in the last couple of years to featuring video content. The reason for this- this is how the majority of users like to consume information. Even if you aren’t ready to dive into Tik Tok, there is a strong push for video across all platforms.
I dive into detail on how to integrate video into each social platform, in this post.
Share a mix of original content and curated (other people’s) content.
When you share someone else’s content, be sure to tag them and share why you love it. This will start to build online rapport with link minded businesses or prospective clients, in addition to diversifying your content.
Here are 5 ways to shake up your mix of content on social media.
Post consistently on one or two social channels
Pick a cadence that is reasonable for your schedule and stick with it. I suggest taking a look at the platform (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tik tok, YouTube) analytics to determine when your followers engage most with your content and build your post schedule around it. I put together a quick post on the top 5 things to remember when determining what, where, and when you’re posting.
Use all the features that the social platform offers
Before you dive in to what features to use on each platform, make sure you have a business account setup. This will ensure you have access to all the business features provided by the platform and can run ads, should you choose to.
Here’s a run down of each platform’s features.
Engage with your social media followers!
Engagement is just as important as posting on social media. Not only should you engage with your own followers, but also other accounts that are aligned with your business. Spend 10-15 minutes a day seeking out new accounts, following them, and engaging with their content. You can also spend this time each day engaging with accounts you already follow. This gets your business name in front of more eyes and shows that you are community minded.
The golden rule when it comes to engagement is to be genuine, people can tell the difference between a canned response and a thoughtful one.