3 Tips for Small Business Owners to Harness the Power of Social Media

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In today’s digital economy, it has become impossible to ignore the reach that social media platforms afford its users.
Here are 3 ways small business owners can utilize this powerful tool to their advantage.

Tip 1: Diversify your Online Presence
Gone are the days when maintaining a functional web page for customers to find information was sufficient. Today, it’s important for business owners to build their online presence on various social media platforms that will serve to further their reach. You may want to consider the following when deciding which combination of platforms best suits your business’ needs and target market:
Facebook – great for targeting a large number of potential customers and supports various formats of content, be it text-heavy posts or visuals and videos
Instagram – especially effective if millennials are your target audience as they view, create and share content on this platform regularly
LinkedIn – allows you to connect with fellow professionals and business owners, building networks that will come in useful.
Tip 2: Practice 2-Way Communication
Business owners can leverage on the fact that social media platforms are built to foster interaction between users. Encourage customers of your products to leave honest feedback and make the effort to respond promptly. This is especially so for negative feedback; replying graciously will not only placate the unhappy customer but will also send a positive signal to other users on your site.
In a world where peer reviews greatly influence consumer purchasing behaviour, investing time to build strong relationships with your existing customers through 2-way communication will help to attract new consumers to your business.
Tip 3: Be Consistent with your Content
Once you have established which platforms best suit your business needs, commit to updating them with content regularly. Consider topics that matter to your target audience and keep yourself abreast of current trends that capture their interest. Producing content consistently not only builds brand awareness among social media users, it also helps to establish credibility and brand reputation.
It is also important to create content that is in line with your brand values. Consider the case of The Body Shop. They use such platforms, not just as a means of publicizing product launches, but also to share causes they believe in. Their Facebook page, for example, features images and write-ups on campaigns to end animal testing, a cause that is very much aligned with their belief that beauty should be cruelty-free. Customers value authenticity in a brand, and hence creating and posting content that reinforces your brand is desirable.

H.E.R Entrepreneur is a platform for women entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs to be inspired, educated and empowered through our online resources, meet-ups, workshops and conferences.
Meet like-minded individuals who will be convening at our annual H.E.R Asia Summit on 26th September 2018 by purchasing tickets here.

 

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