Top Tips for Small Businesses on Social Media

Social media can be overwhelming, especially when you have a business to run. Here are the top tips on why you need a social media presence and the keys to having a strong online engagement.

Why? Customers look to social media for business legitimacy. With social media playing such a large role in so many people’s day-to-day lives, finding businesses across platforms provides potential customers with a sense of confidence about your product, brand or services.

Who? Remembering who your audience for your business is will be key to how you speak to them and engage with them. The end-user should be your focus for social media platforms, and showcasing your brand as a wealth of knowledge resource in your industry. Who are the brand influencers in your segment? How can you engage with them? What are some products that are key to your success? Can you engage with them in some way online?

Where? Focusing your attention on two or three social media platforms will provide the best engagement for you so that you can maximize your presence without becoming overwhelmed. Generally, focusing on Facebook and Twitter is best for most businesses to get started. Having a presence on these platforms would be posting at least three times per week on Facebook and daily on Twitter. LinkedIn and Instagram follow close behind as other platforms to utilize, but it does depend on the brand and business as to which makes the most sense to engage with.

When? There is no better time to start your social media accounts than now. You can front-load content onto your page on certain platforms (like Facebook) to have a stronger presence out of the gate for your business. Each platform has different optimal times to post for best engagement levels, whether you are looking for comments or sharing your posts. Reviewing the analytics for your social media platforms can help you to understand when your audience is online and engaged most often, and then tailor your posts to reach them at those times.

What? Sharing content is all about a mix of showing your business personality, what you do, and (non-competitive) content related to your business and industry. Having fresh content to share and engage your audience is key! Starting with a blog can help you link back to your website to drive traffic there and provide an opportunity for you to share snippets of information related to your business.

Overall, social media allows customers to engage with you directly. You can open this up as a two-way conversation by asking questions, or for feedback. Ultimately you want the engagement from your audience, so finding ways to get them excited about what you are posting with special promotions, giveaways, featured projects, DIY tips, etc. will help boost your online presence and social media account followers.

For more insights into getting started and what to consider, check out our previous blog post about Small Business Social Media Branding and Setup Tips.

If social media is not your cup of tea, don’t worry, it’s ours! Did this leave you with more questions than before? Let us know and we can help to develop a strategy and plan of action for your business.