If you are a business owner, you have probably spent time researching social media marketing for small businesses and for good reason. Today, the number of active social media users stands at around 4.2 billion, which is close to twice as many as there were back in 2017.
Social media users spend an average of 2 hours and 25 minutes on various social media platforms every single day. Furthermore, social media is no longer exclusively for big businesses. In fact, 71 percent of small-to-mid-sized businesses use social media for marketing and 52 percent post once daily.
If you are a small business owner who’s looking to compete, you need to get online. Here are 5 key reasons why you should use social media for business.
1. Increase Your Brand Awareness
A social media marketing strategy, if properly executed, will translate to higher visibility for your business. If you create interesting, relevant content, people are more likely to share it with their followers and this will boost your exposure and reach. Read these Celebian reviews to find out how they can help boost your profile. The more your brand is shown online, the higher the chances of people recognizing it and eventually making a purchase.
2. Reach More Potential Customers
All business owners know just how difficult it can be to attract new customers. You can spend hours designing an eye-catching website and creating the perfect product, but if nobody knows about your existence, it is basically all for nothing.
Social media has essentially leveled the playing field, giving small businesses a way to compete with their larger rivals for attention. If you use social media to create interesting and engaging content, you can reach a wider audience and encourage them to buy from you. Read more here from Urbanmatter.
3. Understand Your Customers Better
How much do you really know about your customers? You may already have some information about their demographics, but social media will help you learn more detailed information about their needs, interests, desires, and behaviors. You can use this valuable customer data to better your social media marketing strategy and ensure that you create content that appeals to the target market.
Use the compiled demographic information for all major social networks to determine where your audience spends their time online. However, always keep in mind that the demographics are just an overview.
4. Understand the Competition Better
Your competitors are also online and they have probably already put some thought into their social media presence. If you take a look at what they are doing, you will not only get some ideas for your own strategy, but also can learn what is working for them and what is not. Competitor data is an essential part of creating a successful social media marketing strategy.
Undertaking competitive analysis will help you learn what is working and what is not for businesses similar to yours. You should consider looking beyond the main competitors and drawing inspiration from the success of businesses regardless of industry.
5. Establish Long-Term Relationships with Customers
Social media is not just for posting pretty pictures and witty captions. It is also great for building relationships with customers. These are the people that will buy the products and services you are offering and tell their friends about you, which is why it is so important that you nurture these connections.
Showing that you care about customers and their experience with your business will go a long way in securing these relationships in the long-term. Furthermore, as fans like and share your content, you will rise in the social algorithms and gain new exposure without having to spend a dime.
Keep in mind, however, that the average internet user has 8.4 social media accounts, so you can connect with them on different platforms for different purposes. For instance, you could use Facebook for lead generation and building an audience, and Twitter for customer service.