Using social media to market your business isn’t rocket science. Yet, surprisingly, only a minority of small business owners advertise on social media. Are they missing out on targeting a receptive audience?
According to the Yellow Social Media Report 2020, one-third of Aussie consumers admit they will check out a brand’s social channels before committing to a purchase. Little wonder when 56 per cent of Australians are using the internet ten times a day. In fact, in 2020, Hootsuite reports 18 million Australians are now active social media users, while every one-in-three minutes spent online, is spent on social.
It’s time to get social with your business
But social isn’t something you can set and forget, according to PR expert Trevor Young.
“If you strip it right back, social media still works best for businesses that are willing to put in the time and effort,” he says.
According to Young, this means regularly publishing content that is helpful, engaging and thought-provoking. Content that shares vulnerabilities as well as successes and engages in a conversation with customers genuinely.
“In other words, if as a business you deliver value on social media over and above your products and services; and if you do it in such a way that is open and human, then you’ll do okay. No-one ever went wrong being useful and helpful,” says Young.
We do business with people we know, like and trust. Social media delivers an excellent opportunity for you to build a relationship between your customers and brand.
The findings from Yellow’s Social Media report confirm this belief. Half the consumers surveyed say they are more likely to trust brands if they interact positively with customers on social media (51 per cent). Or if they make their content engaging and relevant (54 per cent), and keep it regularly updated (53 per cent). Among females and those aged 18-29 and 30-39 60 per cent or even more, displayed such trust.
Here are 5 reasons to take up the social challenge
Your customers are on social.
When it comes to social media usage, we have already laid out the stats. Still, in case you need more confirmation of the impact of social media on brand awareness, Yellow reports 84 per cent of Facebook users are following brands or businesses on social. Of these, 82 per cent are keen to access benefits for following a brand, such as discounts (62 per cent) or giveaways (47 per cent).
Your customers are already on social media – so why shouldn’t you be too?
Social media advertising is targeted.
Social media advertising allows you to target and retarget your ideal customer. With sophisticated segmenting capabilities, it’s possible to be incredibly specific about the who and how of your advertising campaign. Social media platforms like Facebook help you target your ideal buyers. You can use social media targeting to drive more traffic to your site or a specific product or service. The better you target your campaign, the more effective it will be.
Social media marketing is cost-effective.
HubSpot reports that eight in ten (84 per cent) of marketers were able to generate increased traffic with as little as six hours of effort spent on social media each week. There is little doubt social media delivers bang for your buck. One of the most significant benefits of social media marketing is that it is cost-effective. If you publish engaging content and interact genuinely with your followers then when you do advertise, it’s more likely your ads will convert. Why? You’ve spent time building a relationship with your fans.
Social improves your search results.
It’s a little-known fact that search engines also use your social media channels as a factor in their search rankings. Suppose you deliver credible content to an engaged audience on your social channels. In that case, you are likely improving the trust factor of your brand. Focusing on your social media could also see you moving up in search results.
Your competition is on social.
Regardless of the type of business you are in or who your customer may be, it is highly likely that your competitors are on social media. If you want to remain competitive, it’s essential you, too, have a presence on social channels.
If you want to remain competitive in the marketplace, Anna Rogers from Yellow says it’s vital to have a social media presence.
“Social media is a platform that, while already huge, continues to grow and evolve. For such a low-cost investment, it’s definitely a space businesses should be advertising on. With the right strategy, it can do so much more than just drive engagement. Working with a team of social experts like Yellow can really help you to turn this into a lead generation channel for your business.”
Social media allows you to build brand awareness, trust and most importantly, a relationship with your customers. Savvy businesses are using this to their advantage to show off their expertise and build loyalty.
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