Nowadays, what powers companies are social media presence. If a business is not to be found on any social platform, it is considered as if it doesn’t exist. This can be tricky because even if the company is on social media, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll get notorious and generate all sales from people reaching out to them on Facebook. So, instead of having accounts on different platforms that are not updated frequently, the best strategy is to engage with customers and provide a sense of trust.
If you wish to improve your marketing strategy and change your social media approach, prepare to make your brand known. You can increase customer retention on social media apps in many ways. Still, you must apply what suits your small business better and also constantly look for alternatives and adjustments in order to personalise people’s experiences.
Choose the right platforms
The biggest mistake you can make is having accounts on whatever platform you find appealing without doing any search beforehand because certain customer segments are active on certain apps. For example, according to the latest report, Facebook is the most-used platform in the world, followed by YouTube and WhatsApp, but TikTok had rapid growth, so you might want to try it too. Regarding demographic details, it seems like women aged 30-49 are the most active on Facebook, while men in the same segment are more active on Reddit. These statistics can help you learn where your small business fits if you don’t already know your target audience.
It’s important to choose the platform based on the type of content you intend to publish, too, because not every media product will have success. For example, posting images on YouTube is counterproductive since this platform is made for videos. Or, you wouldn’t want to post only photos on Instagram because it offers more opportunities for you to be seen.
Match the content
Next, you need to match the content to your target audience. This means that you’ll need to do a bit of research and see how other businesses choose to “talk” with their customers. You can’t have a casual approach if your brand aims toward older people because you won’t be trustworthy, but you also can’t use a serious tone if your audience is mostly younger.
In other words, here’s an example of what millennials prefer in terms of content:
- Meaningful partnerships with important causes (supporting social movements)
- Interactive content (polls, quizzes, voice over videos)
- User-generated content (encouraging users to share their brand-related experiences online)
- Simple messages (avoid complicated terms and dull stories)
Recently though, it seems like people are loving video content more than anything else, and this has happened since the pandemic hit the world. Every person appreciates shorter videos, but, for example, fans of a specific brand want to see longer clips and get an in-depth perspective of the creation of a certain product. So, you may want to make videos showing the “backstage” of your company, or you can start a podcast. For these both, you’ll need an audio post production team to edit, mix and master the raw content and add music and what else is necessary for the clip to be complete.
Monitor trends
This might seem useless because who has time to scroll on social media only to get an idea of the trends? But believe it or not, these days, it’s beneficial to follow the trends and adapt them to your small business. Having a fixed social media strategy is no longer effective because the flow of what is watched on the internet is constantly changing.
Let’s suppose the whole world is in the middle of significant social events, and each business wants to keep up with the trend and link this event to its data. If they are able to post this fast and with qualitative input, they’ll be able to overtake the competition. However, they haven’t done anything special but have maintained the hype on social media.
Monitoring social media can also help you learn what video and image formats work best, so you can apply that formula too. Although it may be the same format everywhere, the content is what makes the difference, so you won’t have to worry that you’re copying any other company.
Track your stats
Whatever your strategy, keep in mind that nothing will work if you’re unaware of the power of analytics. You can use all the information displayed to your business’s advantage, placing you above the competition. Watch who follows your page, what posts get more engagement, and what seems to be the ideal hour to post. All these elements will help you apply an approach that fits perfectly into your company’s culture.
Data analytics can promote:
- Better customer experience. By personalising it through targeted social media campaigns, you can offer better advertising experiences to your clients;
- Decision-making. Check your predictive analytics to see what could happen in response to any business changes;
- Operations streamline. Gathering and analysing data about the supply chain can offer crucial information about any production delays or impediments that affect your company;
Be consistent
Finally, you need to be consistent with your strategy, at least until you notice there’s enough space for change. Regardless, you should post consistently and always announce to your audience any changes you’re about to make or if something wrong occurred in any of your processes, people need to know.
Some say that inconsistency is worse than no social media at all because it gives the impression that no one is actively engaged in your brand, which will make any potential customers go in search of other brands. So, make sure you have a team who will always keep the audience involved in your activities to support your business.
Final thoughts
What is your opinion about social media? Is it beneficial for small businesses, or is it something that a few employees can never tame? It may depend on your expectations and goals, so make a reality check on what’s popular on these platforms and try to adapt the content to your brand culture.
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