While major franchises have loads of money to work with, managing a budget is a challenge for any new business owner. If you don’t consider yourself a business owner then you are at the wrong place and this post is not for you. They often have to be smarter in their use of resources, by employing techniques like social media marketing. Social media is easy to use and affordable, leading to the acquisition of new customers and retention of old ones. Keep reading for advice on how to use social media to promote your business.
To boost the reach of your marketing, connect your social media sites with your LinkedIn profile. Adding a Linkedin button to your blog can expand your audience considerably. Your visitors can then share your site with others on LinkedIn, helping you raise your visibility. This can pay off in a big way, since there are 100 million people on the website. Don’t forget about Pinterest – read my post here – Pinterest – what is it and how do you use it
If your company runs a blog, syndicate your blog content on your Facebook profile once the main blog entry is published. This process alerts readers following your blog that there is news on your site that they may want to check out. Join groups that are based around blogging and get to know people there – just don’t spam the group but comment on others blogs. Many times friends have blogs that are not related to your niche but you can learn things from their style of writing and what is working for them – do your homework if you want to get your blog noticed.
Post marketing materials at most three times per day on your social media account. It is a proven fact that many potential customers feel overwhelmed and annoyed when they are constantly updated about a company during all hours of the day. Choose a maximum of three important things to post every day. Don’t post any more that day once you have made your three posts. Don’t be afraid to post personal things also that you have learned along the way – people like reading that they are not the only one in the world that has had problems, hurdles to jump and issues to deal with.
If you have seen advertisements on social networking sites, you know the ad images are usually photoshopped and somewhat mysterious. It’s a great idea to use intriguing images, it draws people to your ad. Obviously, the chances of a customer browsing your website are higher after looking at your ads, than if they ignore your ads. Still today, there are many that don’t take the time to add an image to their site – this really helps when others share to have that thumbnail – it stands out from the writing and may just get the attention you are looking for.
Use your company’s Facebook page to hold contests and sweepstakes. Consumers love to feel like they have an opportunity to get something for free. Contests can be a great way of incorporating this feeling into your brand while getting people excited about your page. A contest can also be a great way to talk up your latest product, getting consumers interested in making purchases.
When you have an upcoming event, using social networks can build anticipation. When you have an event in the works, let the people following you know well in advance, even months ahead of time. When you’re ready to launch new offers or products, your audience will be aware of its details already, and will be excited about it.
Ask customers to detail their social media habits through a survey. If they’re spending more than 1 hour per day on social media then it is time for you to get in on that action! However, if your audience doesn’t utilize social networks, you may need to focus on other areas. It’s easy to set up surveys or polls and if you don’t ask how you going to know what your readers really like or don’t like, what they are interested in and not interested in.
Social media marketing can help take some of the financial pressure off of your business. Instead of investing big bucks, you will instead invest time to produce and release quality content through many different mediums. You can build your customer base across the various social networks and grow your company into a huge success! You don’t have to spend time daily – if you have a tight schedule – then pick a day and make multiple post to your blog and schedule them to come out daily or every other day – it still amazes me the people that don’t use that tool.
Hi Nancy,
Hey thanks for the tips and I am also going to use your link to pinrest I think to try and set mine up. I have had it a while just really didn’t understand it but think since I read your blog I will give it another try. 🙂
Great blog and thanks again for the info.
Susan
You Welcome Susan and if you need help with Pinterest – just skype me and I’ll help you – thanks for the comment 🙂