Over the years, social media channels have become powerful tools for large corporations looking to build and connect with their virtual community of followers. They’ve also turned into profitable platforms for influencers and local businesses.
It’s also worth mentioning that the recent events brought about by COVID-19 drove the use and need for social media further. With physical interactions greatly limited, people are turning to these channels for digital communication, information dissemination, and even entertainment. Moreover, recent months saw a large jump in the number of online personalities, influencers, and online businesses.
If you are a small business interested in tapping social media to spread the word about your brand, you need to rise above the crowd. You need to regularly publish content—engaging and interesting content.
While that sounds like a tall order, here are practical tips for getting started on social media marketing on the right track:
1 – Focus on Building Connections
Social media channels are not called “social” by mistake. They are meant to be used to connect, build relationships, and stay in touch with others. While you can advertise your products or services on these platforms, you must do it tastefully and sparingly.
Rather than selling, focus your social media efforts on building a community for your customers and patrons. Regularly ask your followers for feedback or post about topics that can start a conversation with them. Doing so will help bring these people closer to your brand naturally.
2 – Use Social Media for Customer Service
More customers are turning to social media rather than calling customer service reps for their needs. Here are some findings proving so:
- 54% of customers prefer social media for customer service than phone calls or emails. (Conversocial)
- 60% of customers who complain on social media expect to receive a response within an hour. (Go Globe)
Using your social channels to respond to questions and complaints is a great way to personalize the customer service you provide. Aside from this, however, you can also use the platform to share posts about practical tips and hacks they can use to solve their concerns. This type of content is something that they will surely appreciate.
3- Share Videos and Go Live
Videos and live-stream content saw a rapid rise to popularity recently, and for a good reason. These formats have that audio-visual appeal that blog posts and images do not have, so they tend to perform better in terms of engagement.
Sharing videos will help you keep your followers engaged while providing them with valuable information. On the other hand, going live allows you to interact with your audience and respond to their queries in real-time.
4 – Create Ephemeral Content
Today, various social media platforms offer this feature called “Stories”. Stories, or ephemeral content, are basically photos or videos that will only be available for a certain period of time.
Creating and sharing stories elicits that fear of missing out (FOMO) in your followers, prompting them to take immediate action. This may also drive their interest in your products or services.
It’s also worth noting that Stories appear at the top of users’ feeds. Regularly uploading ephemeral content then helps you get seen more. This can be more advantageous compared to sharing regular posts which tend to get lost in news feeds.
Conclusion
The social media sphere is something that is constantly evolving. On top of that, it also sees the entrance of millions of new brands and names every day. Considering this, you need to devise strategies that will help you stand out, be seen, and get heard on social media. You need to create content that can rise above the noise and successfully draw people’s attention towards you. Only then will you be able to truly grow your social community and reach your business goals.
Do you require innovative digital marketing solutions in San Francisco, CA? We have got you covered! At Cyrusson, we are a full-service marketing agency helping local businesses build a better and stronger social media presence with our digital marketing solutions. Get in touch today to learn more about our services.