Often times we hear small business owners tell us they don’t see the benefits of spending their time or resources on social media. Perhaps you have had the same thoughts with your own business? The key to getting the most out of your time spent on social media is to leverage your profiles to benefit multiple parts of your business.
The great news? You can do this in several ways, and it’s not as difficult as you think.
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Gain a better understanding of who your audience is and continuously learn more about them
Most social media websites offer an analytics dashboard, which allows you to gain beneficial information about your fans. For example, Facebook’s analytics tells you information regarding your followers age, location, language, and when they interact with your page most during the day. Having a deeper understanding of your fans can allow you to better target your customers throughout all of your marketing initiatives. -
Maximize exposure to marketing initiatives happening on other channels such as your website, radio or internet advertising and more.
Through social media, you are able to get the word out about your company’s happenings as often as you would like, free of cost. Websites like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest and Twitter all offer access to huge audiences and the ability to include links back to your website and other business channels online. Strategically posting on social media to support your brand’s marketing objectives is highly recommended.
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Test out new products or services to a select demographic
Social media websites are a great platform to post information about your new products or services. Facebook now allows business pages to post updates for a specific period of time, where the post automatically comes down on a date and time of your choosing. If you’re looking to give your audience a “sneak peek” at your latest creation, this is a great way to do it. -
Drive potential customers and clients to a specific place online
Looking to get more eyes on a specific product online? By using Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter, you’re able to send your audience directly to your new offering. Unlike television or radio advertisements where you’re simply able to tell people where you’d like them to go and hope they do, social media allows you to post a photo or video with a clickable link, create a call-to-action button* and more, directing your audience exactly where you’d like them to go online.
*Call-to-action buttons are available on Facebook
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Network with other like-minded businesses in your industry
One of the biggest benefits of social media is the networking component. By “liking” and interacting with other like-minded business pages, you can create a long-lasting relationship with important brands in your community, and internationally. Social media allows you to directly message other companies, share their content and promote your own offerings on their profiles.
By using your company’s social media profiles to their fullest extent, your business can learn more about your customer base, drive customers to another marketing channel, test out new products or services, maximize exposure for specific marketing initiatives, and create networking opportunities in your industry.
