TECHNOLOGY! The presence of it in our lives rules over all. Not only do our entire personal lives exist on social media, but many of our purchases and financial decisions are influenced by it as well. Due to the dominance of social media in our lives and the fact that we feel as though we have a personal connection to every person on our friend list, we have come to crave the same thing from the businesses that we frequent. Instead of simply getting a recommendation from a friend or looking in the yellow pages (What? The yellow pages?) we want to “get to know” the businesses and the business owners through social media before every purchasing their goods or services.
If you are a small business owner, hopefully, you have grasped and implemented the basic concepts of a social media presence. By this, I mean that you should have at least a Facebook account, Instagram account, and depending on what type of business you own a twitter or LinkedIn. If you have these accounts in place, you should be posting on them regularly. While having these accounts is a great first step towards being successful through social media, there are a few other principles that you can practice in order to get the best results possible, boost your presence, and gain more business.
Post Beneficial Information
Many small business owners with social media accounts make generic posts only a few times a week and on holidays. However, simply wishing your followers a “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Halloween” is not enough to gain their loyalty. In order to make a buying decision, individuals who rely on social media want to feel as though they can trust the business or the individual they will be doing business with. You can easily build trust by offering your followers beneficial information through your social media posts. If you are a retail business, let them know when new inventory has arrived, offer them styling tips, recipes, or other knowledge related to the products that you sell. If you are a business offering services, communicate information about your industry and tips and tricks of the trade. By gathering actual information from you and not only sales pitches, they will begin to view your business as knowledgeable and trustworthy.
Interact With Your Followers
This concept is fairly simple but is often left undone by those who manage social media accounts for small businesses. If a customer/follower takes the time to comment on a post or send you a message through a social media platform, you should take the time to respond. Your responses do not have to be lengthy or complex to acknowledge their presence. Offering a simple response or “Thank you”, is enough to make the follower feel special and create a stronger relationship.
Post LIVE Videos/ Stories
LIVE videos and stories are all the rage on many social media platforms. Followers flock to see what other individuals and businesses are posting in real time. When you post a live video or a story, your follower can receive a notification, keeping them in the loop with your business. More importantly, live videos and stories give your followers the opportunity to see the real you and what goes on in the day to day of your business. Live videos and stories help to develop devoted followers, as long as you post frequently. These devoted followers will often transform into devoted customers who will loyally refer their friends and family.