Small businesses have a big advantage when it comes to social media marketing. Since you have a smaller customer base than large corporations, you can interact with your customers on an individual level. Small businesses are best at forming genuine, long lasting relationships with customers. Social media can help you create more of these relationships. Using social media effectively is especially important if you conduct some or all of your business online. Even if you only do business in person, social media can help you gain new customers. Here are some tips for using social media to market your small business.
Create profiles on multiple social media sites
Creating profiles on multiple social media sites allows you to reach a wider audience. If you only post on Instagram, you’ll only be able to reach customers who have an Instagram account. Start posting on Facebook and Twitter as well, and you can start marketing to more people. To keep things interesting, don’t just post the same thing on every platform. While key information, like you business hours and address should be listed on every social media profile, don’t be afraid to get creative. Having a variety of posts across social media platforms makes customers who use multiple social media sites more likely to follow you on every site. You might also consider using social media that is specific to your locale. For instance, business owners in Japan should create a LINE profile.
Know your audience
Think about what kind of people your customers are. Do you cater primarily to young people? All ages? Men? Women? Make sure the content you post appeals to your audience. If you sell women’s clothing, there’s no point in creating content aimed at men. If you’re the owner of a club, your target audience is young people who like to party. Make your posts fun and exciting! But if you run a diner, you have a much wider target audience. Your posts might be more wholesome and family oriented.
Knowing your audience can also help you pick the social media sites you decide to use. Younger audiences love TikTok, but older customers are more likely to use Facebook. Instagram is a good site to find users of a wide variety of ages on.
Post content on a regular basis
If you forget to post new content for a long time, you’re likely to lose followers. Keep your social media pages updated regularly to retain your current followers and attract new ones. Posting at least a few times a week is highly recommended. The more you post, the more your business will be on your customers’ minds. That being said, you shouldn’t bombard them with ads. Posting more than once a day can come across as annoying. If you feel like creating multiple posts in one day, utilize the story feature of Instagram or Facebook. Adding to your story a few times a day is perfectly fine. But don’t overdo it there either – try to keep it under five story updates a day.
You should also think about when you want to post on social media. Many people tend to look at their phone first thing in the morning, so posting around 7 a.m. is a good idea. People also tend to scroll through social media after work or school, so the evening is also a perfect time to post. If you can’t remember to post at certain times, consider using a tool like Loomly or Hootsuite that lets you schedule posts.
Collaborate with influencers
Collaborating with influencers can be a great way to grow your customer base. You might not be able to afford to pay influencers as much as larger companies can. That being said, many influencers are enthusiastic about working with small businesses. They love to discover new products, and it’s becoming fashionable to shop at small businesses. If your business does e-commerce, reach out to influencers across the country (or even the globe!) that you think might be a good fit. If you’re only doing business in person, reach out to local influencers. Make sure the influencer you’re working with genuinely enjoys your products. You don’t want the person advertising your business coming across as “fake” or “a sellout” to their follower base.
Make sure your customers know about sales
The number one reason customers follow businesses on social media is to receive updates about sales. Every time you offer a discount, make sure to post about it! You’re sure to see an increase in business. Posting about sales on your social media is also a great way to attract new customers. People are more likely to take the risk of trying something new when prices are low. To further motivate customers to follow you, offer exclusive coupon codes that can only be found on your social media.
Share a bit about your personal life
While the main focus of your social media accounts should be your business, it can be beneficial to share a bit about your personal life online. Customers who shop at small businesses are often interested in getting to know business owners as people. Feel free to post a photo of your family, vacation, or pet every now and then. It’ll show your customers that there’s a person behind your business. Personal posts remind customers that they’re supporting someone and their family when they choose to spend money. Even though it’s best to keep the majority of your posts focused on things like products or sales, throw in a personal post every month or so. It’s likely to help keep your customers loyal.
Pay attention to what your customers are saying
Since small businesses usually have a smaller customer base than large corporations, you can take the time to engage with customers on an individual level. Spend a few minutes replying to comments on your posts. If customers DM you questions, make sure to answer them within a few days. In addition, check out posts your customers have tagged you in. People often post photos of food they’ve eaten or products they’ve bought. Thank happy customers for their business by liking and commenting on their posts. You can also feature their posts on your story. People that see posts from happy customers may be more inclined to give your business a try.
