Social media sites for business can have many benefits. Business networking, letting your customers get to know you and your business, and reaching people you wouldn’t otherwise are all benefits of using these sites. However, using social media for your business can be overwhelming, especially if you aren’t sure where to begin.
There are two ways that you can use social media to grow your business. The first is to bring customers to your website through your social media accounts. The second is to use social media for networking. Both of these are a good idea to help strengthen your business. We will look at both types, starting with the ones that can bring you new customers.
SEE ALSO: 10 Most Popular Social Networking Sites in 2017
What to Post
What should you post to your social media accounts? Many business owners make the mistake of thinking that everything they post must be directly related to their business. Some posts should relate directly to your business, but you should post other things as well to keep potential customers interested. Things like humorous or interesting quotes, pictures, and videos are a good way to reach out to your customers, especially if they relate to your business in some way. If you are in the media, the local paper, or win an award, you should post about it. This helps increase your credibility and inspires trust. Questions are a great way to engage your customers. Ask a question about something that pertains to your business in some way. The owner of a hardware store could ask, “Do you prefer to use a hammer or a nail gun? Why?”. A jewellery store owner may ask, “Necklace, ring, or bracelet. Which one do you wear the most?”. The most important thing you can do on your social media account is to cater to your audience. Share content that’s informative and has value for your audience. This can be previous blog posts or content created specially for your social media account. The owner of the hardware store could post “How to choose the right paint for your home.” The jewellery store owner could post “The Four C’s of buying a diamond”. These posts could all lead to a CTA, like “use this 10% off coupon for paint.” or “shop sapphire rings online.” Both examples would lead to more sales. Keep in mind that when customers share your content, they are promoting your business for you. That makes it a good idea to create posts that will get lots of likes and shares.
Facebook
Over 1.5 billion people have an active Facebook account. 71% of adult internet users in the United States use Facebook, giving you an incredibly wide audience. You can use your personal account to create a business page. This is free, and your personal Facebook is kept completely separate from your business page. When you are setting up your page you’ll need to choose the type of business you own. You can choose a local place, company, brand, public figure, entertainment, or cause. Your page can display contact information, business hours, and what your business is all about. You can include photos and videos as well as status updates, and you can place links to your website or blog in your posts. Facebook allows you to interact with your customers, because they can comment on your posts. They can also post to your page. This opportunity to interact makes your business feel more personal and inspires customer loyalty.Twitter
Twitter is one of the top ten websites in the U.S. To take advantage of the Twitter audience, you’ll need to be able to create engaging posts in 140 characters or less. You can also post photos and videos, and you can create polls. Interesting tweets get lots of retweets, which give you a greater reach. It’s also easy for customers to tweet to you. Twitter is specifically suited to businesses who are marketing to a younger demographic. 19% of adults between 18-24 and 20% of adults between 25-34 who use the internet use twitter. Only 5% of online adults between 45-54 use twitter. Twitter changed its name to X.com or X in August 2023, in another change from new owner Elon Musk.Pinterest
80% of Pinterest users are women. This makes it a wonderful site for your business if women are your target audience. Pinterest doesn’t distinguish between personal and business accounts, but you can easily connect it to your business Twitter account. Pictures are a large part of Pinterest, so you’ll want to post a photo with your pins. Pinterest is a haven for DIYers, so if you can create pins with value for them you’ll go far. Take the jewelry store, for example. They could post how to create a homemade jewelry cleaner, with a before and after picture of a piece of jewelry. You don’t want to be too promotional on Pinterest, so it’s best to get creative and create pins that your audience will find interesting.LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the third most popular social networking site. This makes it one of the best business networking sites. Your LinkedIn profile will centre around your career. LinkedIn actually helps you network by recommending people that it thinks you know based on your profile and mutual friends. You can click on Add Connections to add your email contacts and see recommended connections. You can also connect with Alumni from the school you attended. You can connect with business partners, other professionals, and even potential employers. Just like with other social networks, you’ll want to maintain a presence on LinkedIn and share relevant status updates. You can let your LinkedIn posts do double duty by connecting your Twitter account to share your LinkedIn updates on Twitter easily. You also have the ability to mention other users or companies in your status updates. This can be a good idea if you want to be sure that someone sees a particular status update.
The Best Social Media Sites for Businesses
Updated On
20th September 2023
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