Written by
Rebekah Radice
Published on
November 16, 2015
Are you a small business owner looking to expand your online presence?Would you like to know how to use social media to connect with your target market?While the effective use of social media continues to elude many small business owners, there are proven benefits to establishing a solid online presence.Sure you know that social media can create relationships, establish trust and earn a client for life. However, dominating your niche or market requires a strategic approach.So, how can your small business benefit from social media?Below is a 7-step social media approach that every small business should be using. Put these pieces in place to increase reach and grow your business!
If you want to build authority in your industry, social media can establish a name and reputation.From content to conversation, getting involved is a great way to get started. For many, it's taking an established offline reputation and transitioning it into online currency.Sound overwhelming? It doesn't have to be.There are many ways you can do this.
“The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.” ~ Samuel Johnson
DAVIDsTEA has built a reputation through their social channels as lively, engaging, and always entertaining.One look at Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook or Twitter and see why a consistent presence matters.
A photo posted by DAVIDsTEA (@davidstea) on Nov 7, 2015 at 9:06am PST
Create an easy checklist that you can follow daily to maintain consistency. Spell out each step you’ll take, which social channels will support your goals and what objectives you look to achieve.I love to do this with mind-mapping software. It makes visualization so much easier and all of a sudden the task now becomes manageable.Here’s an example of what this might look like.
In a fast paced online world, the competition for attention is tremendous. In order to stand out and attract potential clients, you must combine strategy with creativity.Social media marketing is a perfect tool to assist with that.Make use of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram to share your company story. Tell it in a way that motivates and inspires potential clients to connect and engage.Where do you get started?
To begin attracting your perfect client across various social networks, consider these tips:
Connecting with other business professionals might be counter-intuitive to how you’ve done business offline. But in the online world, relationships are everything.Social media is an excellent way to connect with like-minded business professionals and build a mutually beneficial relationship.However, there are right ways and wrong ways to connect.The right way? Strategically reaching out to people within your industry, niche or community.The wrong way? Randomly sending out requests or long DM's (with no prior relationship) to simply “add to your numbers.”
Join LinkedIn Groups, Google Plus Communities and Blog Tribes to connect with others talking about and sharing similar content to your own.Take the time to comment on their latest post or offer feedback on an interesting tweet. Have a Facebook Page? Your newsfeed is a great way to do this!From your page, go to your page by clicking on the "View Pages Feed" link directly under your cover photo. Now scroll through and begin to share their content and actively engage.
Networking with professionals within your industry and then sharing their content creates goodwill and reciprocity.It also stretches your reach beyond your network, tapping into their established following.
In traditional marketing, would you limit yourself to only one outlet? I can’t imagine the answer is yes.Likewise, don’t box yourself into a corner with social media. Spread your wings, try something new and determine what works best for your business.By mixing social media with online advertising and PR efforts, you will be able to expand your business further than you ever imagined.
Don't reinvent the wheel. Repurpose evergreen content into new media.Test an Infographic, video, podcast or graphic quote on different social channels.Keep your content fresh and your social networks alive and interactive through a variety of media types.Test, test, test to identify what's working and what's not.Here’s an example of how to make this work. This slide deck was repurposed from my post "10 Ways to Creating a Winning Social Media Strategy."With almost 21,000 social shares, it's one of my top traffic drivers and a perfect candidate for repurposing.
Do you find yourself hopping from one social network to the next?Do you often get sucked into Facebook, only to realize you’ve lost hours out of your day?You’re not alone.Creating a solid social media strategy can streamline your efforts and simplify your daily to-do’s. It gives life to your mission, vision and values and provides a roadmap towards success.Stop wasting time and money on one-off tactics and get clear on why you’re using social media. Once you know your why, it’s much easier to understand the how.
Get clear on how you can tackle social media in a productive and meaningful way. Take time to map out the keys to your success.
As a small business owner, your website and the content on your blog are the backbone of your online presence.Not convinced that blogging is the right marketing solution for your business?As Neil Patel with QuickSprout points out,
"Blogging generates the most traffic for companies, and when you’re consistent at it, blogging leads to more search traffic. In fact, blogging is the #1 traffic-increasing factor, while SEO is #2."
So beyond the benefits mentioned above, what else can a blog do for your business and personal brand?
Where do you begin? Identify your WIN.
If you want to build a successful blog, you need to know who you're talking with, what problems you solve, and the opportunity within each of those.
Social media is extremely useful when it comes to keeping in touch with your past and current clients.By connecting with them on Facebook and other social networks, you can build a bridge that can prove extremely beneficial in the future. Not only will you stay top of mind, but you’re creating relevance.With consumers attention spans hovering around 8 seconds, the more brain cells you can earn, the better off you will be once they’re ready to make a purchase or connect with your business.
Sharing an experience is important, but crafting it and having a purpose is even more important. Focus on the “telling” of the story.The goal is to help your audience and potential clients relate – whether it’s to you and your business or to a past client through a positive testimonial.Start creating your own stories and watch how people react. You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to draw in a client when you allow them to understand who you are and connect with you on a much deeper level.
There are many benefits to your small business getting active on social media.How can you better position your business across social media to welcome new customers? And how can you use social media to endear customers to your small business?Answer those questions and unlock the benefits and power of social media in your small business.