Top 8 Social Media Marketing Strategies for Small Business

If people don’t know your business exists, it won’t get off the ground, and you won’t be successful. So, how do you get the word out? Using a digital marketing company that can provide you with a solid strategy can be very helpful. Many small businesses underestimate the value of social media and try to handle it themselves, leading to repeated mistakes. Fortunately, with the right guidance, these mistakes can be easily corrected.

What needs to be done?

You should assess your current social media profile and develop a strategy that can benefit your small business.

How to Do It

There are 8 social media strategies that small businesses can use to enhance their online performance in ways that benefit both them and their clients or followers.

  1. Post Frequently 

Consistency is vital. Your online presence should be steady and predictable. Many people start with a big splash, posting several times a day, but over time, their posting frequency tends to decline.

Think of your online presence as a conversation in a group. You need to present engaging and thought-provoking content to keep the discussion going and maintain interest. It should be worthwhile for your followers to stay engaged in the conversation

  1. Not Just About Your Company

Between 1970 and 1990, companies relied on an approach of persistently pestering, calling, and flooding consumers with advertisements until they bought their products. This strategy is no longer effective, but many small businesses still believe it is! Social media has now made it possible for people to have a more personal experience with your business.

Apply the 80/20 rule: 80% of what you post should offer value to your readers. This includes news, information, or updates relevant to your industry. The remaining 20% can focus on your small business, such as specific promotions or updates about what’s happening in your business. For example, if you make 10 posts, 8 should provide valuable industry-related information, and 2 should be about your business.

  1. Assorted Types of Media

Providing your target audience and followers with interesting posts is not that difficult. Your posts should include a variety of media types.

This can include: 

  • videos,
  • links,
  • case studies,
  • images,
  • reports,
  • infographics,
  • white papers etc

It’s important to provide your readers and followers with valuable, beneficial, and trustworthy information. However, this doesn’t mean the content has to be dull or solely text-based. Spice it up using some of the mediums mentioned above to keep their interest

  1. Good Old Call to Action

You might think that the main goal of a social media marketing strategy is to make sales and that people should clearly understand your desire for them to buy. However, it’s not always that obvious. In fact, if you include a call to action while doing website designing, it’s more likely that people will respond if you explicitly ask them to.

It is important to remember the 80/20 rule. Do not ask for a purchase or special offer in more than 20% of your posts.

  1. Make Use of Different Sorts of Posts

Apart from varying the types of content in your posts, you should also present them in different ways. Don’t just post articles with videos, links, and photos. Ask thought-provoking questions, set up surveys, or share surprising facts. This will help you understand which types of posts work well and which do not.

Another great idea is to ask people on your social media platforms what they enjoy seeing and what they would like to see less of. People appreciate giving their personal input, and you can gather valuable information from them to adjust your social media marketing strategy.

  1. Interaction and Complaints 

Think of social media as an informal conversation you’d have in your store. Make people feel comfortable, engage with them, and address their concerns and requests. If you receive negative comments, gather as much information as possible and resolve the issue privately. Once the problem is resolved, share the outcome and resolution on the page or platform.

Never ignore negative comments or treat someone rudely. Negative comments and complaints are a great opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to customer care. This can lead to significant positive outcomes, especially when it becomes clear that you genuinely care and address their concerns.

  1. Promote Your Profile to Increase Followers

Social media for small businesses isn’t that difficult. If you’re struggling, you can always seek help from a social media marketing company to promote your profile.

The easiest way to promote your online profile and increase your followers is to give them a compelling reason to follow you! A prize draw is always a great idea. Just ensure that the prize is truly worthwhile, such as a nice dinner, tickets to a game or concert, or one of your products, to name a few. Choose the winner through a random draw. Additionally, make sure the rules of the competition or draw are simple and easy to understand.

Promote the contest both online and offline. Make people aware of your social media contest. This will encourage those who are not already followers to follow you in order to participate in the competition.

  1. Use All Social Media Platforms

The most popular social media platforms are:

  • Facebook,
  • YouTube,
  • Twitter,
  • LinkedIn,
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

However, be careful as social media can be time-consuming. There is no doubt that you should start by using these platforms. Each has its own benefits and pitfalls, some more than others. Facebook is the quickest way to get business, while Google+ is perfect for SEO purposes but has limited user engagement. Twitter is becoming the go-to platform for reaching a younger audience, and Pinterest is ideal if you want to engage in visual marketing or reach a predominantly female audience.

Once again, you should monitor the success rate of each platform and decide which combination is best suited for the specific strategy you need to implement.

One fact is undeniable: a social media strategy for a small business, or any type of business, requires hard work, perseverance, and commitment. If managing this on your own feels too challenging, consider enlisting the help of a reputable social media marketing company to develop and implement your strategy.