Social media sites
What is social media?
Social media are web-based communication tools that enable people to interact with each other by both sharing and consuming information. Social media is also generally used to describe what we post on sites and apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and others.
Why should you create social media accounts for your business?
Today’s businesses interact with their customers in more ways than just in a transaction. You can now directly message your favorite restaurant on Facebook to ask if there is still a discount tonight, and you can share the latest news from your favorite charity on Twitter. Our favorite brands are becoming a part of our everyday life. “Influencers” and “brand ambassadors” can even have powerful effects on what we choose to buy.
As a new business, you’ll want to tap into the power of social media. But you don’t have to be on EVERY social media platform, we actually highly discourage that since you will be spreading yourself too thin, especially if you’re just starting out. However, if you concentrate on a couple of key platforms that you will be active on, you will find that this expands your reach to many more potential customers. Here’s a look at just some important ways social media can improve your business:
Increased brand recognition - Your social media profiles are just new channels for to promote your business and products. This is important because it simultaneously makes you easier and more accessible for new customers, and makes you more familiar and recognizable for existing customers.
Improved brand loyalty - Brands who engage on social media channels enjoy higher loyalty from their customers. A strategic and open social media plan could prove influential in morphing consumers into being brand loyal.
More opportunities to sell - Every post you make on a social media platform is an opportunity for customers to buy. When you build a following, you’ll simultaneously have access to new customers, recent customers, and old customers, and you’ll be able to interact with all of them.
Humanize your business - Social media is a place where brands can act like people do, and this is important because people like doing business with other people; not with companies.
Higher credibility - The more people that are talking about you on social media, the more valuable and credible your brand will seem to new users.
Increased Inbound Traffic - Every social media profile you add is another path leading back to your site, and every piece of content you syndicate on those profiles is another opportunity for a new visitor.
Decreased Marketing Costs. According to Hubspot, 84% of marketers found as little as six hours of effort per week was enough to generate increased traffic.
Better Search Engine Rankings - Google and other search engines may be calculating their rankings using social media presence as a significant factor, because of the fact that strong brands almost always use social media. As such, being active on social media could act as a “brand signal” to search engines that your brand is legitimate, credible, and trustworthy.
Richer Customer Experiences - Every customer interaction you have on social media is an opportunity to publicly demonstrate your customer service level and enrich your relationship with your customers.
Improved Customer Insights. Social media also gives you an opportunity to gain valuable information about what your customers are interested in and how they behave
Why is it important to use social media accounts for your business?
Social media, when done right, can lead to more customers, more traffic, and more sales, and it’s here to stay. It’s also very likely that your competitors are already involved on social media, engaging your potential customers and establishing themselves as the trusted brand. Even if your competition is not involved on social media, there’s even more of a reason to get started—the field is open. So the sooner you start, the sooner you’ll be able to start growing that audience. And realistically, you don’t have anything to lose by getting involved in social media.
Checkout some of the benefits and advantages these top social media sites offer for your business:
Pro Tip
Eventually, you will want to look at yourself and your business in all your social media pages. How do you present yourself in social media? How do you present yourself to the world? Here are some things you should consider:
Your presence on this social media platform is consistent and in alignment with your vision and mission
You wouldn't mind if your page was brought up in a job interview
You have appropriate privacy settings
When you search for my business online, no inappropriate content appears
All of the photos of your business that are online, even on other pages or in the accounts of your friends, are appropriate
Everything that your friends have posted on your business profile is appropriate
The people who you have friended and follow on social media post things that reflect positively on your business and personal brands
Your basic information about your business in terms of contact information and business description are complete.
Your posts are grammatically correct, do not have punctuation or spelling errors, and use professional language
