Making the most of social media is essential to the success of nearly every business, and MN2S has identified five key methods for boosting your profits by taking advantage of this technology.
From Twitter and Facebook to Twitch and TikTok, the world of social media is constantly evolving and growing in popularity. With several platforms to choose from and video content and influencers now an essential part of the picture, we’ve previously looked at five essential tips for executing your brand on socials. But how can it directly affect your business? While initially, social media can seem like a fun promo tool for your start up or new business, there’s some absolutely crucial benefits that result from a well executed social media plan.
Five of the most important ways social media can help your start-up or brand…
1) Expose your start-up to new markets and demographics
The most popular way to find new customers via social media is through ad campaigns on the biggest platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Not only will these efforts increase brand awareness with a diverse audience, but users can now purchase products directly on social media websites. Having the option to purchase directly in apps like Snapchat makes these ad campaigns a worthwhile investment.
Being ahead of the curve on new platforms like TikTok and cutting edge technologies like virtual reality will also have a serious impact on your business. Mastering these platforms results in increased exposure and new customers. Utilizing influencer marketing and brand ambassadors can help immensely as well. There’s endless opportunities within the social media world, and its up to every small business to find their own niche.
2. Establish your company’s reputation and define your brand identity
In order to have a successful social media strategy, it’s key that you define your identity and accurately relay your message as a brand. With many people consuming the majority of their media and news through social platforms, this is often the best way to build an image for your start up and spread awareness of your business.
The first step is deciding on the message you want to convey. Are you focused on informing customers on the advantages of your product, or will you instead discuss the impact your start up will have on society as a whole? Once a company’s mission statement and message is established, social media channels can be the best way to connect with customers.
3) Track and analyze your existing customers and monitor your competitors
Most social media websites include some built-in tools for analyzing your audience and measuring results. However, it can also be helpful to utilize other tools like Google Analytics and Hootsuite to gain even more insight into your online presence. These platforms will give you an in-depth look at the demographics of your customer base. It is also useful to study what content they prefer and adjust your strategy accordingly. Closely analyzing your social media performance will result in real world benefits for your business.
Not only can you learn more about your audience, but its also useful to monitor your competitors’ performance. How are they using their social media channels, and what’s working (and not working) for them? Studying your competitors’ strategies will provide valuable insight for your own company’s business decisions.
4) Interact directly with your customers and other potential users
It’s important to not only post interesting and relevant content to your audience, but also interact with them directly in a variety of ways. For example, a popular new avenue for this interaction is through messenger apps. Actively promoting a chatbot or live chat can help your start up tremendously. Interacting with your customers on social media is a great way to popularize your brand and provide high quality customer service.
On platforms like Twitter, some of the most recognizable brands freely respond to their customers. They might even respond to viral content or chime in after other companies’ tweets. Keep up with what’s currently trending online to expose yourself to an infinitely wide audience. Posting about several different topics and engaging in conversations with other accounts can be highly advantageous when executed correctly.
5) Improve company performance across other platforms and ad campaigns
From the outside, it might appear that social media and email marketing are competing channels. But in reality, success in the social media realm will boost other marketing strategies as well. Specifically utilizing both email marketing and a robust social media strategy will be mutually beneficial.
Linking your social media channels within marketing emails gives your customers more ways to connect with your brand. Additionally, success on social media will surely lead to more email subscribers. Social media is also an ideal place to promote blog posts, upcoming events, and other noteworthy information about your company.