Author: jonathan.howard

Some Stats to Think About

Only 74% of small businesses use Social Media

26% still do not use social media,

28% just started using social media in 2016.

90% of small businesses surveyed are only on Facebook

41% actively engage followers and share content daily!

Source: https://clutch.co/agencies/social-media-marketing/resources/small-business-2017-survey#important

Now compare that with the statistic that 44% of American’s believe that it’s important for institutions they engage with to have a strong social media presence.

Small Businesses on Social Media

It is time for small businesses to step up and decide to be a part of the social marketplace. Failure to commit resources to social media is negatively impacting your business right now. You may not be seeing the effects of it but your market reach is shrinking. More people begin to adopt social media across all demographics. In order to be a brand people decide they want, you need to be a part of the conversation. This conversation is happening on social media! Here are just some stats to support the importance of being on the right social media platforms:

Of those who have been using social media for at least 1 year, 63% found it useful for building a loyal fan base.

Almost 90% of marketers say their social marketing efforts have increased exposure for their business, and 75% say they’ve increased traffic

More than 50% of marketers who have been implementing social media marketing tactics for two years have reported improved sales

Things I Want

Now as a small business owner myself, I want to have increased exposure, a loyal customer base, increased traffic and of course improved sales. These all help improve the bottom line, which is one of the most important things for maintaining a business. Not mentioned here for those not as concerned about profit. Being active on social also increases your reach allowing you to have a greater positive impact on more people.

So Now that we all agree that you need to get into the game in order to be successful, how do you actually get in the game!

 How Do I Get in the Game

1. Pay attention to your ideal demographic.

Where do they live their social media lives? Are you after the 18-30-year-old female, Facebook, and Pinterest or Facebook and Instagram may be your wheelhouse. If they live their social lives on these platforms then you are more likely to engage them by posting and creating content within their social sphere that is informative and educational, as I always like to say you are aiming to edutain. I challenge you to pick and maintain two platforms regularly engaging customers.

2. Define your brand and stay consistent

Be Consistent with your brand on all your social media platforms on your website and in your physical location. Your brand is more than just your colors and your logo although they do help identify you online. Your brand identity includes what you stand for, how you do business, taglines, verbiage, and images that you use. All of this should a support your brand definition.

3.But Why Your Brand?

Once you have defined your brand, you then need to show customers why your brand is different. Why should they choose you over the other options? This is where you can really win on social media. A good starting point for any brand is identifying what the features of the products you offer. Then decide and highlight benefits customers can gain from those features and how they are different from your competitors. This is a much more in-depth topic that I will explain more deeply in a future blog post.

4. Create a Schedule and Stick to It

Post regularly and consistently for a long period of time. On top of posting of content, engage your customers, respond to every comment and thank them for being loyal customers with special promotions. Make them feel special and like they matter to you and your business because they should.

5. Blog

Here is an advanced tactic you should move to as soon as possible and that is to BLOG REGULARLY AND WITH EXPERTISE! I personally blog because I have opinions and I want people to listen to me! but any business should have a blog on their website where they are actively blogging and then sharing this created content with followers via social media.

But any business should have a blog on their website where they are actively blogging and then sharing this created content with followers via social media. This helps define you as an expert in your field it helps you differentiate your business and it helps build customers for life. Customers value your knowledge and build a relationship with you when you provide valuable information to them that they can use.

Yes, blogging can be difficult but think of your blog as the Thanksgiving turkey, then think of your social media posts as the turkey sandwiches. You can get a solid 10 social media posts from one well-written blog post that is chock full of information!

6. Think About Standing Out

Finally, take the time to think about how you and your brand can stand out on social media! What can you do that will capture the attention of others and set you apart in a positive way. How can you stand out? Better pictures? Cooler presentation? Eye-catching layouts? Bright colors? Hilarious captions? Being an educator? Being a great collaborator? Whatever it is that makes you stand out, whatever you believe is the biggest differentiator is your gold! Make sure you have content behind it but if you stand out and support that with real-life tangible things your followers will benefit from then you WIN because you captured them (standing out) and kept them (by engaging with great content)!

So the challenge is to research what platforms you should be on for the most bang for your buck, then define your brand, and begin posting consistently for a long period of time. Provide useful and entertaining information to customers, not just a sales pitch, and finally begin to blog.

If this is too much then look for some help around your town many small business offices offer classes on social media, I personally offer tools and calendars along with posting materials, many at low cost. There are also many tools on the Internet and Social Media Managers like myself that can help you tap into the social media economy.

If you need help please reach out and we will get a plan together for you! Or get a free 30-minute Social Media Consultation Call!