8 smart ways in which you can use social media to increase brand visibility
When you kick-start your business, the big guns like product development and distribution, sales strategy, technology upgrades, and human resource will demand all your attention. When weighed against these, handling social media can seem like a piece of cake. Here’s what you should realise: social media is mountain lion disguised as a domestic cat. Your business will be in trouble if you underestimate the attention it needs.
Social media regulates itself based on the input given by millions of users. In other words, it is a treasure house of customer information, and if used the right way, it will bring your prospective clients right to your doorstep.
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Post daily and regularly
Facebook filters the content on its news feed based on priority. Having followers does not guarantee visibility; your posts might not reach them unless they have regularly interacted with previous ones. A post or two a day is sufficient on Facebook while a Twitter feed typically requires more as it is micro blogging. Instagram feed doesn’t follow a priority filtering so one post a day works best because you don’t want to crowd your followers’ feed. No one likes a hovering mosquito.
Make sure your posts are original and show a variety.
Posting topics that are relevant to your business will keep your posts original. Texts are not the only way to go; Facebook and Twitter give you the space to share links, videos and images. Make full use of this because a diverse page equals a diverse following.
Be good humoured and show your enthusiasm
A few polite and cheerful words subconsciously appeal to the better nature of people; it gains you a brownie point that’ll play in your favour the next time they come across your post. Bear in mind that you are still a professional so do not go overboard with your excitement.
Visual cues make a better impact
Images are the easiest to comprehend and your followers are gifted with visual radars; scrolling almost always stops at an image. Instagram and Pinterest are good social platforms to exercise this tool. If you have more to say and think a regular image cannot convey that information, try infographics. These are a great way to get across valuable information while still making it attractive to the user.
Don’t give up an oldie – blog the old way
Maintain a blog on your website showcasing your expertise. Create an ocean of information that a follower cannot find anywhere else and share this blog on all your social media platforms. Being a reliable source of information makes you very valuable because it is an endangered species. Blogs are also a great way to share stories, giving your followers reasons to relate to you and your startup.
Know when to post
This is quite crucial to implement so your posts don’t get lost in the crowd. It is first necessary to know your target audience and its demographic. If you’re targeting a young crowd, it would be best not to post on late evenings on weekends. Evenings work well during weekdays because your audience might check in during long hours of commute. Lunch times are also ideal.
Interact with pages and posts similar to yours
Engaging in thoughtful and relevant conversations exhibits your expertise to the business as well as the clientele world, and invites positive attention. Making your own posts interactive by asking your followers for their opinions and thoughts builds better relations. Most importantly, the more your followers interact with you, the better is your priority level on their news feed.
Look out for business-friendly applications
Apply Pinterest’s ‘pin it’ button on hover to connect images on your webpage or blog to your Pinterest account. Followers passing by your blog can directly pin those images onto their Pinterest board, thereby increasing your brand visibility on Pinterest.
Instagram’s blog, ‘Instagram for business’ is vast platform that pools business stories and achievements – a place to keep your eyes on. Instagram in general is a laid-back platform that you can use well to engage your followers better.
Twitter has supporting applications like Auto Tweeter that you can use to send scheduled tweets from your desktop – a helpful tool if you’re an ardent planner.
Many analytical applications help you monitor the traffic entering your social media platforms – the number and frequencies of visits, most popular posts, differences in responses, etc. Analytics give you a clear picture of what’s working and what’s not so that you can regulate your posts and share them across different social media platforms accordingly.
Do you know other ways of using social media to your full advantage? Let you know in the comments below!
