Imagine spending just 6 hours a week to increase brand awareness, traffic and sales, with little or no cost. That's right! About 90% of marketers recently reported that social media is providing tremendous exposure for their business, and that's just one of the many benefits. Social media is now an essential part of any marketing strategy, and the benefits of using social media are so great that anyone who doesn't use this cost-effective resource is missing out on a phenomenal marketing opportunity.
It's easy to see that social media marketing is a key element to marketing success, and many companies recognise the potential for business growth by using this platform. However, some of these professionals are unsure of the tactics to use and whether they are effective. According to social media experts, 96% of marketers currently engage in social media marketing, but 85% of participants are unsure of the tools they should best use. With this blog, I aim to clear up the confusion by explaining the benefits of using social media to market your business.
Social media is one of the most cost-effective digital marketing methods for distributing content and increasing your company's visibility. Implementing a social media strategy will significantly increase your brand awareness as you will engage with a wide audience of consumers. Start by creating social media profiles for your business and begin interacting with others. Get employees, business partners and sponsors to like and share your page. The fact that people are interacting with your content will increase brand awareness and help to improve your business reputation. Every post that is shared is introduced to a new network of people, who may become potential customers, and the more people who know about your business, the better. More than 91% of marketers said that their social marketing efforts significantly increased their awareness if they only invest a few hours a week. There is no doubt that your brand benefits from just having a social media page that, if used regularly, can generate a wide audience for your business.
If you don't market your business through social media, your inbound traffic is limited to your regular customers. People who are familiar with your brand are likely to search for the same keywords that you are already listed for on Google and other search engines. If you don't use social media as part of your marketing strategy, you'll have a much harder time reaching people outside of your loyal customer base. Every social media profile you add to your marketing mix is a gateway to your website, and every piece of content you publish is another opportunity to attract a new customer. Social media is a melting pot of different people from different backgrounds and with different behaviours. With different people comes different needs and mindsets. By posting your content on as many platforms as possible, these individuals can find your business organically. For example, an older consumer may search for your website using a specific keyword on Facebook, while a teenager may begin their search on a completely different social media platform because they search for products or services quite differently. By marketing on social media, you can effectively open your business to a wider range of diverse consumers around the world.
While posting on social media can bring some traffic to your business, more effort is needed to see significant success. Search engine optimisation (SEO) is very important to achieve higher rankings on Google & Co. and bring more traffic to your business website. Although social media doesn't directly improve search engine placement, social media experts note that more than 58% of marketers who have been using social media for a year or more still achieve better search engine placement. If you are able to rank high for your keywords, it will revolutionise your traffic and continue to generate positive results for your business. Let's face it, everyone uses Google to find information and is unlikely to go beyond the first 1-3 pages because the answer is usually on the first few results. If your business website is not at the top of the search engine results, you should probably adjust your search engine optimisation strategy. To have the best chance of ranking better on social media, you should create high-quality content on your website that contains the perfectly matched keywords. Content such as blogs, infographics, case studies, business information and employee photos make your company's social media profile interesting and credible. Once you start posting high-quality content, you'll build a social media community of followers who will ‘like’ and ‘share’ your content. Most importantly, it gives you more opportunities to connect with industry influencers who will write about your business and return links – which directly impacts search engine placement.
The increased visibility gives your business more opportunities for conversion, meaning more people who have reached a downstream level in an order or purchase process. Every blog post, picture, video and comment can drive traffic to your business's website and increase traffic. Social media marketing allows your business to make a positive impression by adding a human factor. When brands are interactive by sharing content, commenting and posting status messages on social media, a brand becomes personal. People prefer to do business with other people rather than with companies. More than 51% of marketers reported that taking the time to build relationships with consumers has a positive impact on sales. The better impression you make on a visitor, the more likely they are to think of your business when they need your product or service. Studies have also shown that social media has a 100% higher completion rate than outbound marketing, which is the traditional direct approach to the customer. When a brand is interactive online, consumers who follow your brand's accounts often begin to trust your company's credibility more. People use social media platforms to stay connected to their friends, family, and communities. Since people are already talking to each other, why wouldn't they include your brand? It's highly likely that they'll mention your brand to a friend when your products or services are needed, providing your business overall social proof of its quality. As social media experts report, 66% of marketers see lead generation benefits when they use social media platforms for at least 6 hours per week. When you put your brand in an atmosphere where people are sharing, liking and talking about it, you can only improve the conversion rates for your existing traffic.
Social media is a networking and communication platform. Creating a voice for your business on these platforms is important for humanising your business. Customers appreciate knowing that when they leave comments on your pages, they will receive a personal response and not just an automated message. Being able to acknowledge each comment shows that you are paying attention to your visitors' needs and are committed to providing them with the best experience. Every customer interaction on your business's social media accounts is an opportunity to publicly show your compassion for your customers. Whether a person has a question or a complaint, social media allows you to address the matter in a human dialogue. A brand that is committed to customer satisfaction and takes the time to write personal messages is automatically seen in a positive light, even when responding to a customer complaint.
One of the main goals of almost every business is to build a loyal customer base. Since customer satisfaction and brand loyalty usually go hand in hand, it is important to regularly engage with customers and build a bond with them. Social media is not limited to just promoting your brand's products and advertising campaigns. Customers see these platforms as a service channel through which they can communicate directly with the company. The millennial generation is known to be the most brand-loyal customers of all. Born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, millennials represent the largest generation in U.S. history – and they will soon take full hold of the market. Studies show that this customer segment is 62% more loyal to brands that communicate with them directly on social media. Since these tech-savvy individuals depend on communicating with their brands, companies need to use social media marketing to capture the attention of their most influential customers.
Customer satisfaction and brand loyalty both play a role in giving your business more authority, but it all comes down to communication. When consumers see that your business is posting on social media, especially replying to customers and posting original content, you appear more credible. Interacting with customers regularly shows that your business cares about customer satisfaction and is available to answer their questions. Happy customers are very keen to recommend a good product or service, and they usually use social media to voice their opinions. When customers mention your business on social media, it advertises your business and showcases your value and brand authority to new visitors. Once you have a few satisfied customers talking about their positive buying experiences, you can have actual customers who liked your product or service do the advertising for your business.
Social media marketing is probably the most cost-effective part of any advertising strategy. Signing up and creating a profile is free on almost all social networks, and any paid advertising efforts you want to invest in are relatively inexpensive compared to other marketing tactics. The cost-effectiveness is a great advantage as you can get a higher return on investment and keep a larger budget for other marketing and business expenses. If you decide to use paid advertising on social media, always start small to see what you can expect. Once you get used to it, you can refine your strategy and try increasing your budget. With even a small investment of time and money, you can significantly increase your conversion rates and eventually see a return on investment for the initial money you put in.
One of the most valuable benefits of social media is the marketplace insight it provides. What better way to learn about your customers' thoughts and needs than to talk to them directly? By monitoring activity on your profiles, you can see the interests and opinions of your customers that you might not otherwise be aware of if your business didn't have a social media presence. Using social media as a supplemental research tool can give you information that helps you better understand your industry. Once you have a large following, you can use additional tools to analyse the demographics of your customers. Another insightful aspect of social media marketing is the ability to segment your content syndication lists by topic and determine what types of content generate the most impressions. With these tools, you can measure conversions based on posts on different social media platforms to find the perfect combination for driving sales.
Publishing insightful and well-written content on your social media channels is a great way to become an expert and thought leader in your field. There is no single way to become a pioneer or expert – it takes continuous work that can be supported by online networking tools. To establish yourself as an expert, you should use certain social media platforms and build up your presence. Be communicative, connect with your audience, share content and promote yourself as a brand. If your social media campaign is aligned with other marketing efforts, your skills will be highlighted and your followers will look up to you. When you are able to engage directly with your customers, a relationship is created that they will appreciate, and you will become a notable influencer in your field.
It's clear that social media marketing has its advantages. So if your company doesn't already have the appropriate profiles, you should create them! Fill in your company information and publish appealing content to attract followers. Ask people relevant to your business to like and share your page to boost your profile. When updated regularly, the right social media marketing strategy will lead to more visitors, better search engine optimisation, higher conversion rates, better brand loyalty and much more. There is practically no reason not to integrate social media into your marketing strategy. Since it is cost-effective, there is little to lose. Your competitors are most likely already active on social media, so don't leave your potential customers to them. The sooner you get started, the sooner you'll see your business grow.
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