You'll Wonder How You Ever Survived Without These 8 Amazing Online Tools
The age of the internet has made life easier than ever in many ways. Getting an answer to any questi[...]
So, you’re ready to share your startup with the world. Congratulations! But, that also means you know just how much goes into nurturing a business from the ground up. Part of ensuring that your new startup is successful is using social media to your advantage.
I’ll bet that you have a lot of experience with social media already. You probably use Facebook and Twitter to connect with friends and family. You may even use Instagram to upload funny videos. Using social media to market your business should be a piece of cake.
Think again! Social media for business is a whole different ball game than using it for personal reasons.
- You’ll do a lot more listening
When you use social media for personal reasons, you do a lot of talking and not so much listening. It can be fun to respond to people’s posts, but a lot of thought doesn’t go into your response. It’s the complete opposite when it comes to social media for business.
First, you should be on the lookout for keywords and keyword phrases that relate to your business. You may find that people are using a certain phrase that you aren’t currently using in your online marketing efforts.
Perhaps, more importantly, you should be listening to learn what people think about your brand, both positive and negative. That way you can enhance the positive aspects of your business while addressing the negative aspects quickly.
Does all this seem overwhelming? You have help! Consider Hootsuite or the Mention app if you’re looking for a little assistance in this area.
- You’re going to spend a lot more time analyzing your efforts
How much time do you spend thinking about your most recent personal social media post? Chances are, you forget all about it and move on to the next thing as soon as it’s posted. This strategy simply won’t work when you’re running a new startup business.
You need to spend a lot more time analyzing your efforts, and you need to be thoughtful about what those efforts are. It starts with deciding whether you’re looking for exposure, or if you’re looking for sales.
If you’re just tracking how often your post gets retweeted or shared, but you’re looking to boost your sales, you’re analyzing the wrong thing. Instead, you should be focusing on how your social media efforts affect your bottom line, which means understanding the statistics behind every single post you place on your social media accounts.
- Social media isn’t all there is
It’s easy to get caught up in the flurry of social media. As a matter of fact, 28 percent of the average American’s day is spent on social media. When it comes to sharing information with your friends, social media is the best way to do it, but you have to get a little old school when it comes to business.
Social media definitely deserves your attention, but that 28 percent only amounts to about 1.75 hours each day. What about the rest of the day? Capture your target audience’s attention and see if you can get them to sign up for an email list. Don’t be afraid to pass out fliers in areas where your target audience spends most of their time. As a matter of fact, putting all your eggs in one basket can be dangerous. Would you have a way to access all your followers and find new customers if Twitter goes down or if Facebook starts charging business owners?
Use social media to your advantage, but definitely use old-school marketing methods to reach more people.
Don’t let social media get you down
Some campaigns will flop. That doesn’t mean you aren’t on the right path. Keep trying! Just make sure you’re creating a business-centered approach that fits within your budget.
