The Benefits of social media for small business is IMMENSE. It can be a powerful source for lead gen, driving website traffic and conversions. BUT, social media is a fast-paced, ever-changing environment and to stay relevant, small businesses must remain aware of trending topics and consistently post fresh, engaging content. In the right hands and with the appropriate audience, social media can be an invaluable asset for any business. In fact, studies show that 64% of consumers check out a company’s social media presence before deciding whether or not to buy from them.
1. Build brand awareness with social media
The best way to get people interested in your product or service is to make them aware that it exists. If potential customers don’t know that you exist, they can’t buy from you. Fortunately, social media is a great way to build brand awareness. Research has shown that 65% of consumers who follow a particular brand on social media intend to buy from that brand, compared to just 18% of consumers who aren’t following any brands on social media. With brand awareness, you’ll get a higher volume of sales leads, more site traffic, and more foot traffic at your brick-and-mortar locations. Brand awareness is critical during the start-up phase, when you’re trying to build your customer base. This is an especially challenging time for businesses. Depending on your niche, it can be difficult to find customers.
We have explored different ways you can build you brand awareness on social media HERE.
2. Grow your audience with social media
You can’t build a house without a foundation. In a similar way, you can’t build a social media following without first growing an audience. This is an important part of any social media strategy, and unfortunately, it’s often overlooked by businesses. Before you can start growing your audience, you need to figure out who that audience is. If you’re just starting out, you might want to focus on targeting the general population. However, if you’re a large corporation with a specific audience, you might want to narrow it down further. For example, if you’re a bank, you might want to focus on retirees. After you’ve identified your ideal audience, you need to find ways to grow your following. This can be challenging, as most social media platforms are designed to make it easier to connect with friends and family rather than businesses. However, there are ways to hack the system and grow your following using social media.
3. Show you’re an expert with social media
Social media is a great place to show your expertise. You can do this by answering questions, providing tips, and giving advice. By helping people you’ll build their trust in you, as well as your brand. This can be especially helpful if you’re trying to gain traction in a crowded space. One of the best ways to show your expertise is to answer common questions. It might take you some time to find these questions, but it’s definitely worth it. While you’re searching for questions, you should also be on the lookout for common phrases and themes. These are excellent places to insert your brand, provided you’re coming across in a helpful and non-spammy way.
4. Show your human side with social media
Many people have the misconception that businesses must be cold, calculated, and impersonal. There are benefits to appearing professional, but there’s also a time to show your human side. When you show your human side, it helps to humanise you and your brand. It also builds trust with your audience. There are several ways to show your human side on social media. You can post pictures of your team. You can share pictures of your office. You can share company videos or podcasts. You can even share photos from company events. The key is to share content that feels personal, not promotional.
5. Help find new employees with social media
Finding new employees is never an easy or quick process. In fact, it usually takes at least a few months, and sometimes it takes even longer. Some businesses hire head-hunters, some use online applications like Seek, and some hire recruiters to help find new employees. Social media can also be used to help find qualified employees. Some businesses have discovered that posting job opportunities on social media can be a quick and effective way to find new employees. There are a number of social media platforms where job seekers frequently check for opportunities. These include Facebook, LinkedIn, and even Instagram. If you decide to go this route, make sure to check the rules and regulations of each platform to ensure that you follow the platforms rules.
6. Help find new customers with social media
Finding new customers can be tough, especially if you’ve already exhausted your existing customer base. Fortunately, social media for business can be used to find new customers. You can either focus on converting social media users into your customers or you can use social media to find new leads to sell to other businesses. If you want to turn social media users into your customers, you’ll need to create value for your followers. The best way to do this is by giving away valuable information. For example, if you’re in the marketing funnel business, you might want to post marketing tips, marketing statistics, and marketing advice. You can also create lead magnets that are valuable but not time consuming to consume. For example, you might want to create a guide on how to start a funnel business.
7. Provide valuable feedback with social media
Social media is a great place to find out what your customers want, what they’re thinking, and what they want to see from you. You can do this by asking questions, running polls, and even hosting contests. You’re probably already aware of how helpful surveys and polls are for gathering feedback. They’re great tools for finding out what people think about your business, your products, and your brand. The best part is that you don’t need to spend money on a poll or survey. You simply need to create a poll or survey on one of your social media pages.
Summing up
Social media for business is one of the best ways to build brand awareness, grow your audience, find new customers, and help find new employees. It’s also a great place to provide valuable feedback. However, you need to know how to use social media wisely in order to reap these benefits.
Inspired to incorporate this type of content into your digital marketing strategy? Looking for a bit of direction, or have no idea where to start? Here at Oath Creative we can help you start this journey or revamp what you have already started. So, get in touch today.
