Social media is everywhere these days and as a solo professional or small business owner it is imperative that you be part of it.  Should you use Facebook or Instagram? LinkedIn or Twitter? It can be overwhelming choosing the most appropriate ones for your business. It’s also daunting trying to keep up with content creation, reader interaction and following your competitors.

In today’s business setting, social media is the ultimate way to market your business and reach your customers in a one-on-one environment. The key is to make this contact direct, attractive and relatable. You also want to make your social media efforts work in conjunction with other marketing methods you use.

When you have so many other tasks to do as a business owner, social media can easily become the last thing on your to do list. But don’t let that happen – start small. First, think about your social media goals – how do you want social media to work for you. Choose your platforms carefully, some are very fast paced, some are more suitable for images and videos and others are more article and information focused.

Second, take the time to find out which sites are ideal to reach your target market. Those are the sites you will want to focus on for your social media messages. Also check to see what your competitors are posting – read audience comments and take note of how companies respond.

Third, put some thought into your content. A mixture of images and text generally works well for sites like Facebook and LinkedIn.  Animated GIF’s (an image file) or short videos are becoming more and more popular for social media posts. Videos viewers and your audience more than text and can be used on every single social media platform.  Make your posts genuine by including stories and conversations mixed in with industry news, consumer education and your business promotion.

Social media is an interactive marketing tool. Therefore, it is vital that you respond to comments, questions and take part in conversations. This will help build trust between your audience and your business which in turn will lead to sales.

Maintaining an active social media presence must be an ongoing process. The best practice is to set up a consistent posting schedule in order to keep your content relevant and timely. Create several messages at one time and schedule them to publish throughout the day or week.

Finally, when you put your business on social media it is a reflection of you. Professionalism is crucial in your content, comments and your response to your readers. This also extends to your personal social media sites as well; your customers may also be seeing these posts.  Losing a customer because of something you posted personally is a tough pill to swallow.

Social media is an easy, convenient and cost-effective marketing tool for all small businesses.  As the Essential Assistant I can help you create a social media campaign, develop content, schedule posts and respond to customer comments and inquiries so that you can focus on what matters most – productivity, profitability and moving your business forward.

All the best,

Jo