Social media is a powerful tool for small businesses to reach and attract new customers in their local area. According to Statista, there are more than 4.59 billion active social media users worldwide as of December 2019, and 84.3% of the UK population has a social profile. This means apart from just having a website in Bromley there is a huge potential market for small businesses to tap into, if they know how to use social media effectively.
One of the main benefits of social media for small businesses is that it can help them build brand awareness and trust among their local community.
By creating and sharing valuable content that showcases their products, services, personality, and values, small businesses can connect with their existing customers and attract new ones who are interested in what they offer.
Social media can also help small businesses to showcase their social proof, such as customer reviews, testimonials, ratings, and referrals, which can influence the purchase decisions of potential customers.
Another benefit of social media for small businesses is that it can help them generate leads and conversions. Social media platforms offer various features and tools that can help small businesses to capture the attention and interest of their target audience, such as ads, stories, live videos, polls, quizzes, and more.
These features can help small businesses to drive traffic to their website or landing page, collect contact information, offer discounts or incentives, and encourage action. Social media can also help small businesses to nurture their leads and conversions by providing timely and personalised follow-up messages, reminders, and offers.
However, just like website designers in Bromley not all social media platforms are created equal, and what works for one business might not work for another. Therefore, small businesses need to have a clear social media strategy that guides their output and helps them achieve their goals. A social media strategy is a plan of how a business is going to handle its social media presence over a set period of time.
It typically includes the following elements:
Goals: What are the specific and measurable objectives that the business wants to achieve through social media?
Audience: Who are the ideal customers that the business wants to reach and engage with on social media?
Platforms: Which are the best social media platforms for the business based on its goals and audience?
Content: What type of content (e.g., text, images, videos, etc.) will the business create and share on each platform to attract and retain its audience?
Schedule: When and how often will the business post its content on each platform to maximise its reach and engagement?
Metrics: How will the business measure and evaluate its social media performance and progress towards its goals?
A social media strategy can help small businesses to focus their efforts, optimise their resources, and maximise their results. It can also help them to adapt and adjust their approach based on changes in their business or market.
To illustrate how a social media strategy can work for a small business in the UK, let’s take an example of a local bakery that wants to use social media to generate new clients locally. Here is a possible outline of its social media strategy:
Goals: The bakery wants to increase its brand awareness, customer loyalty, and sales in its local area.
Audience: The bakery’s ideal customers are people who live or work near its location, who love fresh and quality baked goods, who value convenience and customer service, and who are active on social media.
Platforms: The bakery decides to focus on three main platforms: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Facebook is the most widely used platform in the UK, which can help the bakery reach a large and diverse audience. Instagram is popular among younger users, who are more likely to follow brands and buy from them. Twitter is a platform where the bakery can join conversations with its local community and potential customers.
Content:
The bakery plans to create and share different types of content on each platform to showcase its products, services, personality, and values. For example:
On Facebook, the bakery will post high-quality photos and videos of its products, behind-the-scenes stories of its staff and processes, customer reviews and testimonials, special offers and discounts, events and announcements, polls and quizzes, tips and recipes, etc.
On Instagram, the bakery will post eye-catching photos and videos of its products, featuring different flavours, shapes, and decorations. The bakery will also use hashtags, stories, reels, and live videos to increase its visibility and engagement. The bakery will also encourage its customers to tag them in their posts and stories and repost them on its own account.
On Twitter, the bakery will post short and catchy tweets about its products, services, offers, and events. The bakery will also use hashtags, mentions, retweets, and replies to join relevant conversations with its local community and potential customers. The bakery will also share useful and interesting content from other sources, such as local news, events, trends, etc.
Schedule: The bakery will post its content on each platform at different times and frequencies, depending on the best practices and analytics of each platform. For example:
On Facebook, the bakery will post once or twice a day, preferably in the morning or evening, when its audience is most active.
On Instagram, the bakery will post once a day, preferably around noon or after work hours. The bakery will also post stories and reels throughout the day to keep its audience engaged.
On Twitter, the bakery will post several times a day, preferably during peak hours or when there are trending topics.
Metrics: The bakery will measure and evaluate its social media performance and progress towards its goals using various metrics and tools. For example:
The bakery will use the native analytics tools of each platform (e.g., Facebook Insights, Instagram Insights, Twitter Analytics) to track its reach, impressions, engagement, followers, etc.
The bakery will use Google Analytics to track its website traffic, conversions, bounce rate, etc. from its social media sources.
The bakery will use tools like Hootsuite or Buffer to schedule its posts, monitor its mentions, and generate reports.
The bakery will use tools like SurveyMonkey or Typeform to collect feedback from its customers and prospects.
By following this social media strategy, and used in conjunction with a great website design in Bromley, the bakery can leverage the power of social media to generate new clients locally. Social media can help the bakery to increase its brand awareness, customer loyalty, and sales in its local area. However, the bakery should also be flexible and adaptable to changes in its business or market. The bakery should regularly review its social media strategy and adjust it accordingly to optimise its results.
COMMON MISTAKES BUSINESSES MAKE USING SOCIAL MEDIA
Some of the common mistakes small businesses make on social media are:
Posting content inconsistently or sporadically, which can reduce their reach and engagement with their audience.
Posting content that is boring, old, or inauthentic to their brand, which can damage their reputation and trust with their customers.
Not engaging with their customers or fans, which can make them feel ignored or unappreciated.
Posting without captions, tags, or hashtags, which can limit their visibility and discoverability on social media platforms.
Posting for the wrong audience, which can waste their time and resources and fail to attract their ideal customers.
To avoid these mistakes, small businesses should have a clear and consistent social media strategy that aligns with their goals, audience, platforms, content, schedule, and metrics.
They should also create and share valuable and relevant content that showcases their products, services, personality, and values. They should also interact with their audience and provide them with feedback, incentives, and offers. They should also use the features and tools of each platform to optimise their performance and results.
For more information on how you can use social media to promote your business locally and attract more local clients contact Pozitive Media web designers in Bromley on 0800 292 2921 or go to our website www.pozitivemedia.com