How Social Media Drives Small Business
Social media is not just for social purposes anymore. It has become a mainstay in the business realm. It offers incredible opportunities for small brands around the world. It’s an asset to anyone who can use it to its full potential. Reach millions of active users daily with a consistent and optimized campaign. If you have ever questioned the positive influence social media could have on your business, now’s the time to put your doubts to rest. Get the facts on how social media can boost your brand.
The Skinny on Social Media for Small Businesses
Millions of people log on to their favorite networks every day. Facebook has the most active users, with 1.9 billion, followed by YouTube with 1 billion. Tapping into these immense audiences can do wonders for a small business. Almost 90% of marketers report increased business exposure due to social media campaigning, according to Small Business Trends. Another 75 percent say social media efforts have increased traffic.
At least one-third of internet users say they use these platforms to glean information about a product or brand. That’s millions of people who could potentially come across your company’s social pages on the search for relevant products or services. Brands that are flubbing their efforts – or ignoring this venue altogether – are doing their businesses a great disservice. You’re bound to fall behind your competitors if their names are popping up in consumers’ newsfeeds while yours falls to the wayside.
It can have a measurable impact on small business success. It’s no longer optional for a small business to engage with customers via social media. Consumers expect brands to have profiles on the major platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Brands without a social media presence are disappointing to social-savvy customers – who are quickly becoming the majority in the global marketplace. Social media provides the chance to engage with your target audience on their level, and spread brand awareness in an organic way. You are throwing away this amazing opportunity by not optimizing your social media efforts.
Creating Your Social Media Presence
You understand the importance of joining social media as a small business. Now you may be wondering how to go about it successfully. Luckily, many small brands have pioneered the way for others like you. For example, The Brooklyn Circus recently won the Shorty Award for Small Business on Social Media. This small business’s award-winning social media strategy includes having a specific voice, being consistent, and approaching each platform with a different strategy.
The Brooklyn Circus focused mainly on Instagram, posting stunning imagery to illustrate its products. It uses Twitter for customer interactions and Facebook for correspondence with its older audience. With the right social media strategy, you can achieve similar success. Before you start planning your campaigns, you need to get one thing out of the way – vanity metrics. Social media is plastered with them. Likes, followers, comments … numbers don’t mean anything unless they directly influence the success of your brand.
The Brooklyn Circus doesn’t have a massive following on any of its profiles, yet it has still experienced incredible success through its social media presence. Don’t get stuck on the number of followers or friends you have. Instead, focus on metrics that matter, such as conversions and website traffic. Once you know which metrics to track, modify your strategy based on past successes and failures. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. First, learn how to master each platform.
Get the Facts
You probably know the top sites for businesses off the top of your head. It’s easy to keep up with what the “kids are into these days” when it’s had such an astounding affect on small businesses. Yet, knowing how the platforms work and knowing how to make them work for you are two entirely different things. There are rules and expectations for each platform – some that differ drastically. Here’s a brief overview of the three top sites:
- Seventy-nine percent of online adults use Facebook, according to Pew Research. This puts Facebook in the lead by a landslide, with second place (Instagram) coming with just 32 percent of online adults. Use Facebook to share photos, videos, and updates about your company.
- Most Instagram users (59 percent) are 18 to 29 years old, compared with the leading demographic of 65 and older for Facebook. Gear your marketing toward this younger audience. Use Instagram for photos, videos, and stories about your brand or products. Artistic niches excel on Instagram.
- About 24 percent of adult internet users are on Twitter. Tap into this audience by channeling a younger crowd – 36 percent of people who tweet are ages 18 to 29. Twitter is most popular among the highly educated. Use this platform for short pieces of texts with links to polls, images, or articles. Interact with users easily by tagging their usernames in your posts.
Juggling so many different business profiles effectively can be difficult. One mistake could lead to a social media PR disaster – bad news for business. If you feel like the pressure is on, you’re not alone. How do so many small businesses use social media campaigns to drive business – especially with just one or two employees in charge of the task? The answer lies in automation.
Meet Me, Tracie Carrigan, Your Virtual Assistant
Automating your brand’s social media efforts can be the best decision you make all year. With a virtual personal assistant in your corner, you can be invincible on social media. Social media marketing won’t have to be your nine-to-five job anymore. You can focus on things that matter more to you within your business, such as customer satisfaction. Meanwhile, your online virtual assistant will masterfully handle all your social media accounts, creating and executing a results-driven strategy. You can achieve your social media marketing and management goals without lifting a finger.
Hiring a virtual assistant to set up and maintain your accounts is the best way to generate returns from your social media investment. Tracie Carrigan is a professional virtual assistant who can transform your brand’s social presence. Whether you haven’t had much luck on social media or don’t have accounts, Tracie can help. Learn more today.
Sources:
http://www.business2community.com/small-business/social-media-important-small-business-01762943
http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7832-social-media-for-business.html
https://blog.kissmetrics.com/outsource-social-media/
https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/03/30/top-10-social-networks-how-many-users-are-on-each.aspx
http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/11/11/social-media-update-2016/
Here are a few other really good resources to read.
