Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have grown from places to keep in touch with family and friends to advertising powerhouses that give small business owners like you the opportunity to reach thousands of potential customers. While building an engaging business website and building quality backlinks are important factors for promoting your business, social media may also raise your Google rankings, create buzz about your products, and allow you to engage with a wide variety of people. If you are new to using social media for business, here are four features that you may want to know about.
1. Facebook for Business
While you might think that creating a Facebook business page is not necessary because you already have a website for your business, reaching out to potential customers on this social media giant can be effective. Most importantly, a business page on Facebook is typically more accessible to customers who use their smartphones and tablets to view web content. They are much more likely to click a mobile-friendly page than one they have to view with a browser app. Even with the advent of mobile-friendly sites, not all of them load completely on mobile devices, especially if they are image heavy.
Creating a Facebook business page for your customers would give them quick access to your business’ information, which is especially important if you own a local business. Consider adding a Facebook button to your main website that links users to your business page, as this gives visitors the incentive to like or become a fan of your page and gives your company wider exposure when their followers see your brand on their feed.
2. Infographics for Twitter
Despite the 140-character limit that is Twitter’s trademark, there are still plenty of ways to advertise your business there, just as other companies have found great success in linking their Twitter feeds to their main website. One of the most effective ways to advertise your business on this social media site is to post infographics on your feed. Infographics are photos that focus on a certain aspect of your business and also offer potential clients information about sales and specials.
This innovative way of advertising is much more likely to catch their eye on Twitter than ads that contain nothing but text. Infographics also allow you to be creative and innovative with your advertising while staying within Twitter’s character limit. Consider offering your followers discounts, coupons, and tips and tricks with colorful infographics, and then add a live link to your main website so those who visit for the first time can scroll through your Twitter feed as well, which may inspire them to follow you.
3. Photos for Instagram
If you own a local business, then you should consider creating a business account on Instagram, a social media site that allows users to upload photos and video clips, follow other users, and comment on what they see. Content on Instagram is also searchable, which means you can use hashtags to tag your business so that others can find it. For example, the food company Hampton Creek, which sells plant-based, dairy-free salad dressings, mayonnaise, and cookie dough, uses its account on Instagram to share recipe video clips and photos of their products, which has gained them almost 34,000 followers.
However, you should try to be selective about how many hashtags you use per photo, as using too many at once might annoy your followers and make your content difficult to find if potential customers try to search for it. When you use hashtags on your Instagram business account, use two or three with each post and always try to include your business’ geographical location so that those who live in the area and search Instagram for local businesses can find your account easily.
4. Instagram Stories
On August 2nd of this year, Instagram introduced a new feature called Instagram Stories, which allows you to create slideshows from multiple photos or upload short videos you can edit using a variety of built-in features. The stories vanish from your feed after 24 hours. This feature would allow you to be creative in the way you present your company and its products without crowding your feed or posting too often throughout the day.
Promoting your small business through social media can be a daunting but rewarding experience that allows you to reach a wider audience with informative and engaging content, helping it grow more than ever before.
Article Submitted By Community Writer
