Build a Social Media Strategy to Benefit Your Small Business

(James Caan) Over the past few years we have seen the rapid rise of social media. Ignoring it is a big mistake for any business. In an ever changing business landscape those that don’t move with the times end up getting left behind.

Social media has changed how we communicate and means there has never been more immediate or available ways to connect with your stakeholders. While it is a great tool, it must also be used with care, whatever the size of your business. It is constantly evolving, so you must have a robust but adaptable strategy to cope with this.

With any content, you should consider your overall goals: are you trying to raise more awareness, generate new sales, or boost traffic to your website? Remembering your objectives should help you build your strategy. There are plenty of ways to measure and analyse social media, keeping a close eye on those metrics will help you understand what is working well, what isn’t and will help you to make sure you aren’t wasting valuable resources.

Any social media strategy works best when it is targeted to a specific audience. If you try to speak to too many you will end up speaking to no one. When you are attempting to connect with more than one audience you must have separate strategies for each. Remember social media was primarily created as a social tool and not for business so, with this in mind, you need to remember not to preach to your audience. You need to talk to people on their terms – social media is very different to normal business communications. It is a two way channel, which means not only is it useful for marketing but it is also a great way to gauge customer feedback. I have said before that the days of mass mailing surveys are coming to an end – social media is a quicker and more cost effective way of knowing what your customers want.

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It is vital you think about your brand identity when using social media. Your company is perceived through a brand and that may not be the same as what you do. The way you use social media should reinforce your company brand and what it stands for. What does your brand stand for? Where in the market are you trying to position yourself? Whatever it is, your social media output should always come back to your organization’s USP and culture. Once something has been posted online, it will almost always be there.

Start Up Loans loan recipient David O’Neal opened his hairdressing salon for children, Short Cuts, in Milton Keynes in June and social media has been key in promoting it. Facebook and Twitter allow David to interact with his customers and to highlight examples of happy clients with the review section and comments left on his page. He also runs regular competitions to engage customers and also allows people to book appointments via Facebook.

By using social media successfully he has been able to keep marketing costs to a minimum, measure what is and isn’t working well, and build a community feel that reflects his brand. David makes sure he regularly updates content to keep existing customers engaged and attract new ones. The success of Short Cuts online is reflected in the salon’s progress – despite only being open for two months, the venture has done so well it has had to take on additional staff.

With so many opportunities to reach your audience, don’t get left behind. Spend time on your social media strategy, remember the purpose of your content, engage with your audience and remember to take advantage of the analytics tools available. If you use social media well, it could prove to be invaluable to your business and help you stay ahead of the competition.

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