How to use social media as a small business
Our simple top tips
Instagram, facebook, twitter, tiktok… the list of social media platforms seems to grow every few years. And businesses of all kinds have managed to utilise them to grow and build their customer base. The impact of social media upon business is undeniable, to the extent that social media content strategies are now often an integral part of a business’ marketing strategy.
However, if you are someone who is not too familiar with social media or would like to know how to make better use of it… it can definitely seem quite overwhelming. When to post, what to post, how to engage followers, how to see any benefit from using it. It can seem like an absolute minefield.
But it doesn’t have to be! We have aimed to note some key hints and tips that can help you develop your online presence - no stress needed.
Develop a post schedule
This tip is definitely of high use. One of the most important factors in developing your social media following and presence is the consistency in which you post. Platforms such as instagram favour accounts that provide content that keep users engaged on the app. So posting infrequently and irregularly can lead to less engagement with your page and posts. So creating a schedule for when you post can help you stay on track and consistent. You could also make a small note of what type of content you may post on each day, perhaps a new reel on Wednesday's and a motivational quote on Monday's. Having a schedule can also help reduce the chance of you posting a lot whilst you have a boost of inspiration and then running out of ideas and not posting for two weeks.
Get inspired
It can sometimes be hard to find new creative things to post every time. So researching and taking a look at what other businesses are doing can be a great way to boost your inspiration for your own posts. Maybe there is a new reel that everyone is using? Or a certain product arrangement you’d like to try. Take inspiration from the success of other businesses in all industries. There may be some simple but effective post strategies that you could easily implement into your own social media content.
Decide which platform is best for you
Not all social media platforms will be as useful to your business as others. Whilst being active on a wide variety of platforms can extend your reach, if you could not feasibly stay active and consistent across all of these, focusing your time and attention on the one platform that is likely to be of most use to your business is a great idea. Knowing which platform is best can also depend upon your target demographic, if your target customers are 55 and over, instagram and tiktok may not be your best choice to focus on. As statistics show that Facebook and Pinterest are the most used platforms for this age group. Some businesses choose to also use different social media platforms for different purposes, such as instagram for building an audience, and twitter for customer service, which can also be a great idea.
Reuse content
Large businesses usually have dedicated marketing teams who handle their social media campaigns. As a small business, we understand it can be hard to juggle all of the usual tasks as it stands - throwing social media into the mix might seem just too much. However, not every post you make needs to be revolutionary and groundbreaking. If you already have media of your business available, such as photos, videos etc. These can easily be used in making posts and content. For example, a simple but easy post is the ‘This or That’ post. Simply posting two products and asking followers to engage and choose their favourite. Furthermore, if you have multiple social media platforms, you don’t need to make a unique post for each platform. The same instagram post can also be used on your facebook account. And the tiktok you just posted can also be shared as a reel on your instagram. Reusing content helps you to make better use of your time whilst remaining active and consistent on your social media platforms.
What’s trending?
Utilising trending topics and content is a great way for you to stay relevant and create memorable content for your audience. Trending content is a great way to connect with your audience and to find new followers. There are many ways to find trending content - with one of the easiest being to scroll through your own social feed and see if there are any reoccurring themes, sounds, ideas or content. Some platforms such as TikTok and Instagram have built in features that helps you to know when content is trending, for example TikTok has a trending tab for current trends and their performance stats.
Vary the media you use
Switching up the media format you post on across your platforms can help to keep your followers interested in your content. Instagram reels have become an increasingly used form of content by many accounts as they have been shown to hold a person's attention for longer than a normal photo post. However, there are also ways you can spice up just an ordinary image post. You can create something engaging like sharing a hint or tip, or even asking questions, encouraging followers to comment and engage with your content.
Engage with your audience
Whilst we are always trying to improve followers engagement with our content, it is also important that we engage with them. Whether this be replying to followers comments or sharing tagged content, it all helps to build engagement which ultimately leads to a better presence on your social media platforms.
Review your results
Whilst it is important to experiment with your content on social media, you will only know what is working and what isn’t by reviewing the results. Most social media platforms provide access to analytics of your accounts and posts. Providing you with a breakdown of what posts have performed the best, which haven’t, how many followers you have gained or lost and engagement with followers. You can use these results going forwards, using the posts that performed the best as a basis for further content and to think of ideas to further grow your following.
Social media is without a doubt one of the most powerful marketing tools currently being used - and it doesn’t look to be slowing down soon! Knowing how you can use it to boost your small business can have many advantages such as finding new customers and clients and raising awareness of your business. We hope these tips have given you something to take away and use in building your business’ social media presence. You can view other posts with tips and hints for your small business on our blog here.