Lots of the new clients who come to us for advice and business growth are familiar social media. In fact, most of them use Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram every day. What they aren’t sure about is the best way to use social networking for business purposes.
Given that the questions and concerns we hear around this topic are so prevalent, we figured there must be a lot of readers out there who aren’t sure how to use social media accounts for business, either. Here are some quick and proven tips you can follow…
Maintain Separate Accounts
Your business accounts should be separate from your personal social media profiles. There are a lot of reasons for this having to do with privacy and professionalism, but the biggest one revolves around the need to keep your messaging type. In other words, you don’t want people to confuse your personal updates with business posts (or vice versa).
Build Customer Relationships
The best way for any business owner or marketer to use social media is to simply keep up with existing customers, vendors, and prospects. By forming connections with them and posting the occasional picture or article link, you can ensure you’ll stay on top of their minds. Then, they’ll think of you first when it’s time to make a buying decision.
Grow Your Brand and Reputation
By regularly posting relevant and insightful ideas you can boost your credibility with your target audience. That’s true even if they don’t read or view everything you put online or interact with it. Just seeing that you are continuing to spread helpful tips and articles can serve to reinforce your expertise in areas where they might need assistance.
Spread News, Promote Posts, and Announce Specials
Your business social media profiles give you a great platform for letting the world know about new products, special events, and discounted offers (amongst other things). As a general rule, you can promote anything on your social media profiles that you would be telling customers, clients, and prospects about through your email newsletter.
Sell Products and Services Directly
We have included this item as the last one on the list because it should be your smallest focus. It’s often very difficult to sell directly from your social posts. However, if you have an irresistible offer, the occasional direct sales message can yield big results, particularly if you have a large and committed following on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
Online Marketing is About Business Growth
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that things like search engine optimization, content marketing, and social media are items that need to be checked off the list. However, it’s important to remember that each of them needs to have a business purpose if they’re going to be worth your time and money.
At Biondo Creative in Philadelphia, we work with our clients to ensure they have cohesive plans that lead to realized growth. If that’s the kind of service and focus you’re looking for, contact us today so we can schedule a free consultation.