Social media…is it working for you?
With numbers of Facebook users rising swiftly, and social media influencing government elections, it’s no wonder that SMEs and sole traders are jumping on the bandwagon too. Being aware of the current power of social media and the fact that your competitors may be using it too, may make you feel that if you don’t get involved, you will end up out of business.
One common mistake that small businesses make is to dive in head first and waste valuable resource without employing a proper strategy. Without a plan, you may not feel the benefits of utilising social media and can become more frustrated and detached from your aims. Here are some quick pointers to help you develop your strategy and get back on track. They apply to both simple and complex social media strategies.
- Who are your audience? It’s very important to identify who you consider to be your audience. Are they customers that you are trying to retain? Are they potential customers? Are they your own staff? Are they other businesses? Once you have identified this, move onto point 2.
- Why do you want to engage with your audience and what do you want them to do? Do you want more traffic to your website? Do you want to be seen alongside bigger businesses within your niche. Thinking abut this will help you decide which social media platform is best (Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn / Pinterest etc.) It will also help you decide how much time you wish to devote to working with social media. For example, perhaps you want to find a way for remote staff to communicate and share information with one another and yourself. A private social network such as Yammer may be more appropriate than Twitter, which is geared towards being public.
- How can I make it interesting? The key to social media is ‘engagement’ and keeping your audience captive and interested. If you are trying to gain new customers, I would recommend not going in for the hard sell. Utilise images, videos and sound…think about what makes your business different and play to your strengths. The more interesting your content is, the more likely people are to share it. Make conversation and get your audience involved in making suggestions – this can positively help shape and mould your business.
There may be more to think about when developing a full and successful strategy. However, thinking about these points is a good start. Please remember that you can always get in touch with us if you need some help with social media or need some advice.
