Social media marketing tips for business from Andrea Gamboa
Every day, approximately 3.2 billion people use social media worldwide. That means that nearly 42 percent of the global population regularly check Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube or another social media network. Chances are, your customers are among them. These social media tips for business can help you more effectively engage and convert customers.
1. Establish a Presence
You spend thousands of dollars and untold hours blogging, tweeting and crafting the perfect Facebook page. But if no one knows where to find you, you have just wasted a great deal of money and effort. Start with a few key steps:
- Make your posts shareable – Include social media buttons on every post to make it easy for readers to share your posts with their friends.
- Post content worthy of sharing – Give your readers quality that they want to share. Your posts should inform, inspire or entertain.
- Include links – Make it easy for readers on your website to find your social media accounts. Post links from your newsletter, your Contact and About pages and even from the signature line of your email.
- Make connections – Establish relationships with other influencers in your area by commenting on their blogs or sharing their posts.
2. Remember the “Social”
Now that people know where to find you, take time to interact. The key word in social media tips for business is “social,” after all. When people comment on your blog or Facebook page, respond to their comments and engage in a positive conversation.
But what about negative comments? When you receive negative comments, respond quickly, calmly and politely. Suggest that the commenter message you privately, and then continue the conversation offline, if necessary.
3. Know Your Audience
Identify your core customer and go to their online hangouts. For example, if your company sells clothing or home décor, consider a Promoted Pin on Pinterest. For business to business marketing, on the other hand, LinkedIn offers a more likely source for lead generation.
Analytics can help you develop a more complete picture of your audience. At a basic level, track which posts spark the most user engagement. You can also obtain more sophisticated and powerful reports with analytics tools that track hundreds of metrics. Knowing that a significant chunk of your audience makes fitness a priority affects where and what you post, for instance.
4. Engage with Visuals
Images and videos spark engagement and increase conversions. Your audience will remember a visual much longer than plain text. But make sure that the photos and videos you use are relevant and of high quality.
Use compelling visuals to enhance your story and personalize your message. For instance, post photos of employees presenting at a recent tradeshow. Link the photos to an article about the presentation on your blog. You can also post videos of customer success stories.
5. Strategize for Success
While social media has opened new and budget-friendly avenues for connecting with customers, embrace these opportunities mindfully. Social media can prove distracting, even in the business world.
First and foremost, take time up front to develop a digital marketing plan. Of all the social media tips for business, this is perhaps the most critical. Set measurable business goals and align your social media efforts to those objectives. You will generate better results from posting wisely on a few carefully chosen platforms.
Secondly, use a social media calendar. Any social media expert will emphasize the importance of posting consistently. Create a posting schedule and stick to it. To help with this effort, consider using interns, as well as social media management tools that automate the posting on a schedule you define.
Getting the Most Out of Social Media Tips for Business
From 140-character tweets to informative blog posts and compelling images on Instagram, social media demands a whole new level of digital expertise. While the possibilities are powerful, the social media landscape can prove confusing. Make sure that your social media activities comply with your overall company ePolicies for electronic documents.
The award-winning digital marketing team at eMazzanti can help you devise a strategy to use social media to its best advantage. From knowing and reaching your target audience to using visuals to convert, we bring proven expertise to help you meet your business goals.
Andrea Gamboa is a digital marketing intern at eMazzanti. In the fall, she will return to Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ, where she studies business and technology.
