As a new entrepreneur, you probably know all about the power of social media. It can be important for many different types of businesses. While it’s a useful tool, many people misuse it don’t make the most out of their platforms.
Here we take a look at a few tips that will set you on the right path to master social media.
Post often
The algorithms for all social media platforms are very complicated. You can never be quite sure what posts are going to show up on people's feed and how much interaction you’ll get. One thing is known for sure, you should post often.
It can be easy to forget to make posts so using a site such as Hootsuite can be beneficial as they’ll allow you to schedule posts and monitor their performance. There are many schedulers available for different social media platforms so it’s good to do a little research to see which one is best for you.
Focus on the right social media
There are a huge number of social media websites and you can’t post on them all. A local window cleaning service would have little impact on LinkedIn but could hugely benefit from having a Facebook page. Conversely, a company selling oil wouldn’t get much Instagram traffic but is ideal for LinkedIn.
At the start, it’s a good idea to go with 2 or 3 different social media channels and really perfect them such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. If you find that comfortable then you can start to expand but it’s best to focus on the platforms which are the closest match to your business.
Promote it from outside
Don’t just rely on your Twitter account to get more followers on Twitter. For example, it’s a great idea to create some business cards here and put your social media tags on them. That way, you can generate more followers from other sources.
You may also want to create some posters or leaflets and have your information on there. If social media is important to your business, then make sure people know where to find you. This can also include email signatures, face-to-face conversations and blog posts.
Add your personality
It’s important to have a tone for your business and don’t be afraid to add a little personality. If you’re an accountancy firm, why not use a meme every now and again? It can help to create more followers and improve your brand image.
If you’re on an image-rich platform such as Instagram, make sure your posts are interesting and something people will engage with. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. There are many great social media accounts out there which use humour and personality to increase their engagement.
Have variety in your content
If all you ever do is make text posts then they’ll never stand out and people will most likely scroll past them. It’s good to mix it up and offer a variety of different content types to engage your followers.
One of the easiest ways to do that is with images. Whenever you’re making a post, you can add a related image and it’s more likely people will click on it. If you’re worried about copyright, then there are websites such as unspalsh.com that have a huge range of free images.
You should also try to be bold with your content. If you have something interesting to say, then why not create a video and post it out? You can even go one step further and start a live stream. Mixing up your content will help to keep your social media channels fresh and increase engagement.
Written by: Felicia Erickson
