There are more than 30.7 million small businesses across the country, so it takes even more ingenuity to stand out among the crowd. Small business marketing is an art form that, when done right, can make all the difference and bring on tons of success. Social media is one of the best ways to get your name and brand to a broader audience. But social media marketing can be a tricky thing to figure out. Luckily, we’ve compiled our top nine social media marketing tips to help every small business!
1. Develop a Brand Identity
The most important thing you can do in online marketing is to develop your brand. This is your business’s persona: their story and reputation that their audience can come to depend on. Branding is an essential aspect of all areas of business; social media marketing, web design, logo design, and even products. Knowing your brand identity before you begin any marketing campaigns is critical to success. That brand identity and story will guide your choices to tell the story you want to be heard.
2. Work With a Pro
In theory, small business marketing sounds easy; put out information to help potential customers find your company. But in reality, many intricate aspects have to be handled with care. Working with a professional marketing consultant is a great way to ensure that the tactics you use will get you the desired results. A professional will help you narrow your ideas and choose the best ones. They can give you advice and then set you free or help you in the execution phase. It’s easy to customize your experience based on your confidence level. But having that professional voice to guide your business is always a good idea.
3. Stick to a Schedule
Developing a social media marketing presence can be overwhelming. There’s so much you can (and want) to do; it’s hard not to get bogged down and spend all your time focusing on social media. Setting a schedule can help keep you on track and focused on the best options. It also helps your audience know what to expect from you.
4. Pay Attention to Your Audience
Each small business has its target audience, the specific group their product or service is geared toward. Having a clear understanding of this audience is critical to marketing success. When you know who is purchasing your product, you can focus on areas they’ll appreciate. It helps prevent you from spreading your resources too thin across a wide variety. This understanding also helps you know where to take calculated risks outside your audience to broaden your base.
5. Check-in Regularly
A great way to check in on your audience and your online marketing efforts is to keep an eye on the analytics of your platforms. Analytics is how you can measure how many people visit your pages, what they do when they’re there, and other helpful information. It’s essential to regularly check your analytics to keep your business on the right track. If you notice something the analytics were great after a particular post, you can try to replicate that in the future. And the same is valid for avoiding things that haven’t gone as well.
6. Quality Over Quantity
Most of the time, you want to focus on quality over quantity in online marketing. It won’t matter if you post more than any one of your competitors if none of it is relevant or worthwhile. Make sure everything you post has a purpose and is appealing. Your photos should be visually stunning, and the captions should be relevant, helpful, or catchy. When you develop a reputation for quality content, your audience will return for more.
7. Pick the Right Platform
There are several different social media platforms to choose from. Each has its benefits and difficulties. And not everyone will be suitable or should be the focus of your small business. Taking a more profound, critical look at each platform will help you better understand what will work best for you. This is an important area to keep your target audience in mind. ‘Where will they like to be?’ and ‘How will they consume your media the easiest?’ are helpful questions.
8. Do Your Research
Don’t forget to use social media to do market research. Both for what your audience is interested in and what the rest of the market looks like. To stay relevant, knowing what’s popular and trending in your genre is essential. Being a social media consumer can help keep you on track and inspire you. But make sure you’re only gathering inspiration and not copying. That route never works out well on social media.
9. Work Towards Specific Goals
Any work you put in on social media will be pointless unless you have a specific goal you’re working towards. Setting goals is a great way to keep your efforts focused. All business goals should be as detailed as possible with measurable results. This is a great way to gauge whether your marketing campaign is working. Your goal can be something you can find in the analytics (likes, shares, views) or a specific increase in revenue. Working towards goals also aids in keeping your posting more about quality than quantity.
Small Business Social Media Marketing Tips
There are so many directions you can take your social media marketing. The possibilities are endless for presenting your brand to the world. It’s your chance to tell your story and invite your audience (and beyond) to get to know your service or product. When you follow our social media marketing tips, you’ll find the success you’re looking for! If you want advice on implementing these tips from a professional marketer, contact us today for a consultation!