5 Benefits of Using Social Media as a Small Business
In today’s modern world, social media and technology are more prevalent than ever. Popularity and followers can be gained from halfway across the planet and faster than at any other time in human history. Although social media is often times associated with teenagers and kids dancing in front of their phone cameras, it provides business owners with powerful tools to attract more clients and expand.
1. Increased Brand Awareness
Imagine you’re scrolling through Facebook or Instagram. You see a post from that one local business you’ve heard of but never visit. You don’t pay much attention to it and carry on with your day. The next day has begun and you’re scrolling once again. You see a post from the same business. You ignore it, but you swear you saw another post from the exact same people yesterday.
Fast forward a week, and you just have to see what they offer. You see the brand’s content all the time on your Facebook and Instagram feed. There has to be something worth viewing. You click, and boom. You start viewing their products, pictures, and videos. Before you know it, you’re a fan.
Social media allows businesses to develop a brand identity that both new and old customers can easily identify. It is much more effective than word of mouth and can be done on a way larger scale. All it takes is a few simple posts and the discipline to post often. It doesn’t have to be every day, but I recommend at least 3 times a week until you start to pick up some traffic.
2. Greater Customer Satisfaction
By being active on social media, your followers can feel valued and represented. This in turn leads to a stronger following and more of their support. Nothing makes a shopper happier than their favorite brand posting content for them, whether it be videos of the office, product trailers, or any creative projects that resonate with your audience. It’s like when a famous artist drops a teaser trailer to a much anticipated album. Your fans will feel satisfied even before the actual product is released. Test different ideas out and be creative!
3. Establishes an Online Community
An active social media page allows for customers to interact with each other to talk about the services or products your business offers. These mutual connections allow for a community to develop. It’s important to have a strong fanbase online, as they are likely to make posts themselves about their experiences with your products. In addition, it allows new customers to connect with old customers and gain a perspective of a product’s quality.
4. Audience Can Stay Up-To-Date
As a social media manager and a digital marketer myself, I can’t even count how many times I have seen social media profiles for businesses that have not been updated in over five years. It’s truly a shame. I used to skip over these Facebook and Instagram pages since I just assumed they had gone out of business.
It wasn’t until I started looking in between the lines and started contacting them that I found out they were still in business. If even I, whose job it is to find these types of businesses that need help establishing themselves online, skip over those with no updated posts, then why would anyone else stop on an old, un-updated, Facebook page?
Businesses must actively seek to inform their audience of any updates, such as a new location, new phone number, new products being launched, or any special events and discount codes. With this, customers may think that their favorite business has moved or closed down. This is definitely every business owner’s nightmare. Don’t let it be a reality. Keep your following up-to-date.
5. Direct Feedback
Last but not least, an active social media presence allows for direct feedback from customers. Not sure what colors you should make your new line of classic tees? Ask your audience! The easiest way to solve a question is to just ask. You can make a direct post and read the comments or you can make a poll.
Whatever the method you use, having the opinions of your customers allows you to directly satisfy their wants and meet their needs. It’s no surprise that the most successful businesses often times ask their customers what they want next. If your product development is slacking and your ideas are weak, just ask. I recommend a healthy amount of gathering opinions, but try not to overdo it. This may seem like you genuinely have no idea what you should provide, and may turn some customers away.
However, as long as you don’t make it a common occurrence, you should definitely ask the people what they want (and then give it to them). Moreover, you may also use direct feedback from comments on your posts to become aware of any issues that you did not know about. For example, a customer may inform you of a shipping delay with their package that you were unaware of.