We know social media can get quickly overwhelming for a lot of small business owners. It’s even more challenging if you’re launching a new business or venturing into social media for the first time with an established organization. What platforms should you use? How often do you need to post? What content will be the most engaging for your audience?
If you’re preparing to get started on social media but aren’t quite sure where to start, consider these key steps for success.
Decide what platforms make sense for you
There are a lot of options when it comes to social media platforms. For small businesses and nonprofits, the most common sites continue to be Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Other options include Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, and the newer platform Clubhouse. Deciding what’s best for your organization comes down to content, audience, consistency, and comfort level. Think about the type of content you can create, the people you’re trying to reach, and you comfortable you are creating that type of content consistently over time. If you have a lot of great photos related to your company, you may want to include Instagram on your list of platforms. If you’re trying to reach a younger audience and have content to share through short videos, TikTok might make sense as part of your marketing mix. If you’re strictly business-focused, LinkedIn will likely be your primary platform. It all comes down to knowing your audience, your brand, and what you can realistically handle.
Complete your business page and add graphics
Next is the fun part – creating your business pages! This is where you get to bring your brand to life on social media. Add as much information as you can to your pages/profiles and be sure to add a cover photo and profile photo that makes sense for your organization. When creating your cover graphics and profile photo, check the latest recommended dimensions to make sure your graphics don’t end up fuzzy or cut off on different platforms because the image sizes vary from one platform to the next.
Set a content strategy in advance
Before you even sign up for your social media accounts, sit down and make a plan for what type of content you will share and how often. Think about the voice of your brand and how that will translate to your social media posts. You’re building a relationship with your audience over time, and you want your posts to sound like your brand from the beginning. Consistency is key too, so also be sure you have a plan for how you’ll keep up with creating content over time.
Have a plan to grow your followers
Last but not least, how are you going to grow your followers? People won’t know you’re on social media unless you tell them! Send an email to your existing clients and ask them to like and follow your page. Use the invite to follow tools on Facebook and LinkedIn to add followers, then ask supporters of your organization to share with their followers as well to help spread the word that you’re on social media. It takes time to build a following when you’re starting from scratch, but keep asking people to like/follow and keep sharing valuable content to grow the following over time.
Do you need help creating a social media strategy for your organization? Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.