Every business owner wants to know how to use social media for business. However, many struggle to know what is the best way to do it. The tricky part is that every platform works in a different way, and getting it wrong can be costly. Social media is a double-edged sword: It gives you the ability to reach a large audience with just the click of a button, but there’s also a catch. Every time you post something on these networks, you are essentially creating content that will live on forever. If you post something that isn’t as polished as it could be, that could have implications down the road when potential customers search for information about your company online. If you want to use social media correctly and avoid common pitfalls, read on.
1. By the Numbers: Why Your Business Should be on Social Media Now
Even though social media is often criticized for having a negative impact on society, the statistics clearly show that it has been very beneficial for businesses. – 68% of consumers prefer to engage with brands on social media over other channels. – 90% of marketers are increasing their social media budget. – Many marketers have increased their budgets by 25% or more. – In 2018, marketers will spend about $50 billion on social media marketing. – 82% of marketers believe that social media is a critical part of their marketing strategy.
2. Define your goals before you start posting
One of the biggest mistakes that businesses make when they first launch their social media accounts is that they don’t know what they want to achieve, and they don’t know who they’re speaking to. You need to understand that every post you make is an example of who you are as a brand, and it’s also an example of how your customers should use your products and/or services. The first thing you should do is sit down and write out goals for each of your social media accounts. You should ask yourself questions like: Why do we have a Facebook page? What do we want to achieve with it? What’s our main objective? What types of posts do we want to make? Who are we speaking to? What do we want to inspire in our customers?
3. Be careful with your branding
Social media is a great way to start connecting with your customers and potential customers, but it’s also an excellent way to damage your brand if you aren’t careful. Make sure that you’re monitoring the posts that your employees make on your social accounts. You don’t want any posts that could damage your brand to slip through the cracks. This can be especially tricky with posts that are meant to promote your products and services. If a customer sees something that doesn’t reflect their needs, they might automatically think that your product isn’t suitable for them. They might then decide to share their frustration with other potential customers by posting it on social media. This is why it’s so important that you be careful with your branding. Every post in which you’re promoting your products and services should be geared towards your ideal customer.
4. Constantly post with no variety
If you’re constantly posting only about your products and services, you’re going to lose customers quickly. Many social media users don’t want to see any posts that are directly related to a brand. Instead, they want to see posts that are entertaining and useful. If every post you make is directly related to your products and services, you can bet that people will eventually stop seeing them in their feeds. And if your posts don’t show up in your customers’ feeds, then they don’t stand a chance of converting. So, instead of constantly posting an endless stream of product and service-related posts, mix it up a bit. Post things that will entertain and engage your customers without directly promoting your products and services.
5. Don’t Forget About Video Marketing
It’s true that 10 years ago, blogging was the way to go, but times have changed. Today, you need to be exploring every avenue that’s available to you. One of those avenues is video marketing. Videos are extremely effective when you’re trying to get your message out into the world. They can be used for everything from introducing your brand to educating potential customers about your products and services. You don’t have to create a long-form video to have success with it. In fact, shorter videos might be better because they keep your audience’s attention better. The important thing is to get started with video marketing. You don’t need expensive equipment to create a video. All you need is something to record yourself speaking with and something to record yourself at certain angles.
6. Don’t rely on automation
Social media automation is a powerful tool. It allows you to share the same post to all of your social accounts at once while you’re sleeping or away from your computer. However, that doesn’t mean that you should rely on it too heavily. Don’t forget that social media is an art form, and it’s also a form of communication. What might be effective for one brand might not be effective for yours. If you use automation too heavily, you might start to sound too robotic. You might not convey the same emotions and personality that make your brand unique.
7. Instagram Mistakes
Instagram is a powerful social platform that allows you to post pictures and short videos. If you do it correctly, you can build a large and engaged following. However, there are some mistakes that you can easily make that will damage your reach and your image. Here are some Instagram mistakes to avoid: – Not using a branded hashtag – Every post you make on Instagram should have a branded hashtag. Instagram allows you to add up to 30 hashtags to each post. This is a great way to expand your reach and connect with more people. When you use a branded hashtag, people who want to see your posts can simply click the hashtag to explore all related posts. – Posting at the wrong times – Every social network has different times when the majority of users are online. You can tap into those times by scheduling your posts when your audience is more likely to see them. – Not using a call-to-action – Every post you make should have a call to action. You want your followers to engage with your posts, and a call-to-action helps you do that. Whether you want people to like your posts, comment on them, or click your link, a call-to-action allows you to inspire them to do that.
8. Google Mistakes
Google is the most popular search engine in the world, and it’s important that when someone searches for your brand, they find your website. Unfortunately, there are some mistakes that you can easily make that will cause your website to drop off the first page of Google’s results. Here are some ways that you can improve your Google ranking: – Not using your website to build links – If you don’t have a website, you won’t rank well in Google. If you do have a website, you can increase your ranking by getting other websites to link to it. When other websites link to your site, it indicates to Google that your website is high-quality. This pushes your website up in the rankings. – Not optimizing your website for Google – Google looks at your website and analyzes it to determine where your website should rank. If you don’t optimize your website, Google might rank you poorly. By optimizing your website, you tell Google that you want to rank higher.
Conclusion
Social media is an excellent way to build relationships with customers and potential customers. However, if you don’t know how to use it properly, it can be a major detriment to your brand. Make sure that you define your social media goals before you start posting. Make sure that your posts are engaging and that they don’t sound robotic. And make sure that you’re not making any of the common mistakes listed above.
