Social Media: How to make work for your business

The power of social media: How to make social media work for your business

Unless you’ve been otherwise engaged for the last few years you’ll have noticed the importance of social media when it comes to business. Indeed, sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn are now playing an influential role in the marketing and customer service capabilities of numerous companies, increasing their audience engagement exponentially.

So, what makes social media so effective?

Social media is everywhere; it’s accessible, engaging, and convenient. Since anyone who’s anyone has a mobile device or tablet these days, social media is something that has a habit of following us around. It is, therefore, the perfect platform upon which to advertise your business. Social media is exciting and interactive; it encourages activity rather than passivity, and is a great way to initiate a two-way conversation. There’s a good chance that your customers engage with social media every day, so why not meet them halfway?

How can you make social media work for your business?

There’s more to it than creating an account and waiting for followers to ‘like’ your page. Here’s how you can extend your reach, social media style.

Getting started on social  media

First of all it’s important to think about your brand, and the ways that you might represent your business online. Before you’ve loaded that log in screen consider how you’d like to come across. Is yours a company that thrives on humour and making your customers laugh? Would you prefer to engage an audience with thought-provoking content that focuses on lifestyle choices instead? It would also be wise to choose your platform carefully; Facebook is popular, but it’s not for everyone.

Understand your target audience

Yes, there are people of all ages accessing all media platforms. However, do you know how your target audience is using such a platform? If you’re to make social media work for you it’s important to understand the visiting habits and usage of potential clients and customers. When are they most likely to log on? What kinds of content do they interact with? Some audiences may prefer to read insightful posts that are rich with witticisms. Others may want to watch a video, or occupy their time with an image gallery instead. Until you know whom you’re targeting and how, you can’t hope to make social media work effectively.

Consider sponsored posts

Until you’ve built a reasonable following online it’s always worthwhile considering a sponsored post or two, enabling your content to be seen across social media regardless of whether the audience follows you or not. A sponsored post doesn’t have to cost the earth either; sites like Facebook make it incredibly easy to choose your budget, depending upon how much you’d like to spend converting prospects. What’s more, you can choose how long the post runs for, and how many times you’d like it to be seen.

Create viral content

Once upon a time anything containing the word ‘viral’ would be something you’d avoid at all costs; a disease or illness that you’d be desperate not to catch. These days, however, viral content is an absolute must if you’d like your target audience to hear what you’ve got to say. Also referred to as viral marketing, this concept is a video, post, or image that is widely shared across social media. Seen, liked, and shared, such content can bring a wealth of traffic your way.

Provide incentives

Nothing entices an audience quite like an incentive, and social media is full of them. Asking followers to share posts and details in return for free trials and entrance into giveaways is a popular way of spreading your name across social media – and rewarding your existing followers while you’re at it.

We’re on social media! You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn; please do connect with us to see what we’ve been sharing, and to let us know what you think. In the meantime, please do contact us if you require our services at all. Establishing a new phone system can seem a daunting task. However, with our help you’ll soon discover the benefits of such an investment. We’ll even see you on your way. Contact us to find out more.