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Social Media Strategy for Small Business

“With a few simple tips and some dedicated time, small businesses can reach their audiences, build their reputation and, of course, increase their sales.”

Harrison Magoutas, Founder at Voltihost

Given today’s hyper-focus on a winning digital business strategy, social media is one of, if not the best, ways to connect with fans and potential customers.

Bold claim! Let me explain…

If you do not have a solid small business social media strategy and a digital presence on the main platforms (for your relevant audience), you may be missing out on audiences that are ready and wanting to connect with your brand – they are desperately searching (consciously or subconsciously) for a business, information, service, or solution like yours, but you may be nowhere to be found! This is why a social media strategy for your small business is so crucial.

Social media is now part of the digital marketing strategies of many companies. We all have a more or less positive idea of social media, but having a strategy on this type of media is key in order to choose the right platforms and set the right goals to reach your right target audience.

Practical small business social media strategies need not be daunting to implement nor expensive. With a few simple tips and some dedicated time, small businesses can reach their audiences, build their reputation and, of course, increase their sales.

Let’s dive in!

Why having a strategy is vital your small business’ success on social media

Investing in a small business social media strategy can offer you many possibilities and support your global or digital communication strategy. In this way, you can in particular:

 Increase the visibility of your business

As of Q1 2020, Facebook had 2.6 billion monthly active users. Every month, 1 billion people use Instagram.

By diversifying the presence of your business on social media – or by simply claiming social media handles to match your business brand – you increase its general visibility. It will be easier for potential prospects or customers to find you on the Internet, and your business pages or accounts can allow your company to optimize its ranking on search engines.

Go to meet your prospects and your customers

On average, users spend 3 hours every day on social networks and messaging platforms.

The purpose of social media is to establish dialogue between different members of communities. This core function of social media allows you to communicate directly with your customers or prospects, to answer their questions, or to inform them about your news and promotions. You can also gather direct feedback on your publications, on your communication campaigns via Internet user comments, and gauge how receptive your audience is by measuring engagement. You can instantly track the number of interactions – for example… shares, “likes” on Facebook, or even “favorites” on Twitter – that your social media activity arouses, and thus better understand who your customers or prospects are, and how to reach them effectively.

Expected Results

More easily retain your customers

Customer loyalty translates into a lasting relationship of trust with your customers, who will thus naturally turn to your company when needed. By establishing dialogues with your customers on social media or by consistently sending attractive, relevant, and targeted messaging, you can contribute to this loyalty.

Find new collaborators

By investing in a small business social media strategy, you can meet new collaborators interested in your business and the spirit of your company – whether this be potential staff, business partners, customers, or vendors. You will also be able to have a firsthand vision of their career and their projects.

 Anticipate crisis communication

Communication is all the more important in a crisis: by employing good small business social media strategy, you can easily observe the beginnings of problems, such as “bad buzz,” and correct the situation by observing, analyzing, and trending user sentiment. To do this, however, it is necessary to have a good knowledge of the tools available to you and of the behaviors deemed inadequate (for example, if Internet users consider that an error has been made, apologizing will be better perceived than seeking any justification).

Great example coming right up…

At the time of writing this article, we are all living with the realities and impacts of COVID-19. What is your business doing to adapt to the situation and ensure the safety of its customers and staff? What is your COVID-19 communication strategy, and can you measure its effectiveness? Having a great social media strategy as part of your overall communications can prove to be extremely valuable in today’s environment to timely distribute information.

For more tips on helping your small business grow and thrive in today’s rapidly adapting digital landscape, stay tuned to more of our blog updates. We’ll strive to keep all our content fresh and relevant to today’s trends!

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