Whether people choose to utilize it or not, social media has many different effective applications. The premier use for social media is to draw attention to a person, a company, a product, or a service. But efficiently gaining that attention can be a more difficult task than you would expect. Social media techniques can play a big part in your success.
One type of user that can really take advantage of social media is a local business. No matter if you are just starting out or if you are already a big name, it is important to connect to the local community that you are a part of. Below you will find 5 social media techniques that will help you attract that important local customer base and set you up for success in your area.
#1: Utilize Facebook for your business
At nearly 2.5 billion users, Facebook has quite the reach. But regardless of this huge reach, there may not be a lot of active users in the area surrounding your local business. One way of getting free promotion on Facebook is by having your customers use the site’s “check-in” feature when they visit your business. You can give them an incentive such as a free item or a discount so that they want to do it. It is a win-win for both sides and may get more people into your business.
Facebook also has other features such as post boosting, event promotion, and ad targeting. These are all efficient in their own way but present their own positives and drawbacks. Play around with these features as they may work better for you than the check-in method described above.
#2: Take advantage of Twitter’s customization features
Though they are both very popular social media platforms, Twitter and Facebook have many glaring differences. Facebook is the most popular choice for connecting the community as it has the correct tools and many users. With that being said, Twitter has advantages that Facebook may be lacking. Twitter has a nifty feature called “lists” that allows you to put your accounts followed and followers into different lists.
This tool could help you by allowing you to create lists such as interested customers, potentially interested customers, groups to market to, etc. By doing this, you can craft tweets for those specific audiences and utilize Twitter more effectively. Consider using this unique platform for your local business!
#3: Show off on Instagram
One of the best things about Instagram is that it is a very visual platform. You are in luck if your business is more visually oriented because Instagram is the perfect place. The eye enjoys pictures much more than walls of text, so hop on Instagram and try it out. For example, if you are selling delicious food, post pictures of it. People like what they can see rather than what they can read about in detail.
Instagram is owned by Facebook, and as mentioned in tip #1, offers ad targeting. This capability allows you to select which area you want your ads sent to. By doing this, you can draw more attention to what your business offers and get more people to visit you. Make sure you take your demographic into consideration while looking at Instagram’s potential, as most of their userbase ranges from teens to adults in their mid-30s.
#4: Use social media to rebrand your business
If your company is brand new to using social media, it may take some getting used to. Customers may already think certain things about your business, and depending on what those are, you may want to rebrand. If customers see your business as one that does not care about the local community, especially if you are very small, they may be turned off entirely.
The beauty of social media is that you can easily run a campaign to emphasize how much you care about your community in order to positively impact your customer potential. When a customer sees that you care about your community, they will want to support you and keep the local community thriving (think about the popular “support local” movement). Play around with ideas of how to show that you care about the community on social media, it could be the best business choice you ever make.
#5: Create coupons and loyalty programs
After learning about the different social media platforms and their advantages, you can take another step by introducing coupons and loyalty programs to your local business. These perks are an important and effective way to bring local customers into your business. If you incentivize initially, they will often form a better opinion of your business and return. Retaining new customers is the most important part of the whole process of attracting them. Use social media to bring customers in, sign them up for the loyalty program, and watch them continue to return to your local business.
Conclusion
Now that you’ve read through all of these different social media techniques, try them out! You should be able to gain some traction and grow your local business. Check back on our website for more helpful marketing blog posts and a description of our services.