Many of our clients are wondering how to get started in social media marketing. While they may have their personal FaceBook or Twitter account, a plan of action is required in order to use it effectively for a business. Before you give up on the idea of using FaceBook, Twitter, or a Pinterest account to promote your business, consider these tips.
1. Do Continual Market Research
Be prepared to take before and after snapshots of your business to uncover the effects that your social media attempts are having on your business. Make a checklist and ask yourself the following questions:
- Is your website getting more visitors? You can easily monitor this by setting up and reviewing Google Analytics.
- Are visitors following the links from your FaceBook or Twitter posts? If one social media platform is working better for your company, by all means concentrate your initial efforts there.
- Are you able to qualify your customers with focused social media content? You can measure this by comparing the rates of conversion to sales.
2. Engage in Conversations with Your Followers
The best social media programs remember that sociability is about communication and the best communication goes two ways. When your posts elicit comments, take the time to engage in conversation with prompt responses. The greater the level of interaction, the more likely you are to get followers. Those followers will share your posts and eventually your social media marketing efforts will begin to snowball.
3. Go for the Share
The easiest way to extend your reach is by placing interesting content on your account. Graphics, quotes, and informative stories can be combined with discounts and sale postings. People with large numbers of followers build loyalty by posting a minimum of one time per day. Since most people are unable to create such sharable content on a regular basis, many successful social media users scour the Internet for quality content. Use a mix of shared content and original content to keep your page interesting. The more engaged your readers are, the more likely they are to repost or reTweet.
4. Remember That It Takes Time
The vast majority of businesses start out with good intentions. The stated plan to create and submit new content quickly falls by the wayside when growth stalls. Instead of giving up, place one or two people in charge of development and give them the time to discover what really works for your business. Once your FaceBook page or Twitter account catches on, growth can quickly become exponential which really makes it worthwhile.
5. Use Social Media to Promote the Unique Aspects of Your Business
Each company has its own personality and social media presents the opportunity for businesses to present their best side. Organize an internal meeting and brainstorm ideas. Does your business have a unique approach to a problem? Share insights that your company has gleaned over the years and you will build, and be able to manage, a stellar reputation in your field.
Many businesses stumble because they over-think their social media marketing in the early stages. Start with simple projects and build from there. Take the time to monitor your follower’s responses and engage in a real conversation with your customers in the comment section. Gradually, you will uncover a pattern of posts that successfully enhances your online reputation and builds the bottom line of your business.