When you’re promoting your business online, it can be a minefield knowing which tools are worthy of an investment of your time and money. This post will help you avoid wasting your time in all the wrong areas and divert your attention to income-producing activities.
Social Media
When you’re looking to build a customer base and draw in new clients, you may turn to social media. It’s fast, free and easy to use to boost exposure for your business – right?
Ah, but Social Media is not merely just one site. Back in the days of MySpace – which you may remember, propelled the Arctic Monkey’s music career – there were few Social Media platforms to choose from. Now there are numerous options.
Did you know that each platform speaks a difficult language – of sorts?
For Example:
Twitter: I am devouring this donut, thanks @Krispy Kreme for adding another inch to my thighs.
LinkedIn: I am proficient at donut consumption. My peers regard my donut eating habits to be above and beyond others in my field. I take pride in the speed and efficiency by which I am able to fully consume an entire box of Krispy Kreme’s.
Instagram: “This donut is totes adorbs – almost too sweet to eat! Who am I kidding? Get in my belly! Nom, Nom, Nom. #donutgirl #foodjam #donutsforthewin #ilovedonuts”
Facebook: Donut Day is my favourite day of the week. Who doesn’t love a sugary ring of greasy calories to bite into for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up? The question is, can you eat one without licking your lips?
It’s important to understand the way people communicate on different social media profiles. The examples I’ve given are just a few of the top media platforms, so be sure to do your research when considering using one to promote your business.
Can Social Media be used to build you business? Absolutely. However, without understanding how to utilise these free platforms, you might end up making some serious errors and fail to achieve what you want – getting sales!
I work with small businesses by offering training and creating customised marketing plans to help get their business out there – and to the right people! (which is so important.) If you’re serious about growing your business and would like to discuss my services, go ahead and send me an email. (laburton08@yahoo.co.uk if the link fails to work) Be sure to write “Enquiry” in the subject so your message doesn’t get missed.
When I was working as a full-time Network Marketer a high proportion of my sales came through Facebook. Therefore, it is vital to open up a Facebook business page and build your following.
NEVER pay for likes. You may have noticed that there are websites who offer to drive followers to your page. I’ve been tempted to do this in the past, especially when you are promised thousands of followers within minutes for just a fiver. The problem is, these followers are usually fake accounts and/or people who are not going to be your customers. You may think that having a huge number of likes on your FB page increases your chances of getting noticed, but in my experience, this is further from the truth. It can also really damage your image, because when a possible client comes to your page, impressed with the 100,000 likes you have, but scrolls through the newsfeed and finds no one has liked or commented on them, it sends a bad message. Paying for likes is not worth your money, but it could cost your credibility. So don’t do it.
Instead, invite your friends and family to like your page to help you get started. It’s unlikely that your friends and family will be your customers, especially long-term. However, they are gateways to potential customers.
Network with other businesses using your facebook business account. Did you know that you can like, comment, share and message people as your business page? Write compliments, share interesting media, celebrate milestones that other companies reach because it gets your name out there. What’s more, you’re building a positive reputation that you support and uplift other companies (even if they’re the competition) rather than tear them down!
Facebook boosts: This is very hit and miss. It’s taken a fair bit of trial and error for me to understand how to maximise this feature, you can very quickly lose £hundreds just in facebook boosting and having a pitiful conversion rate.
Take a look at this video I made for my cosmetics business back in 2016:
This video received a huge number of views and drove sales through the roof. I realised that there were some important lessons I learned from my failed attempts at boosting posts. The first error I made, was I didn’t display enough information on the post. You pay for clicks remember, so despite worrying that showing the price and information upfront might put people off, that’s actually a good thing and will save you money. It means that the people who click through are already aware of the cost and know what it is you’re advertising and they are still interested. Which means?? Higher chances of sales…! Ker-ching!
However, sometimes luck is on your side and your video/post is shared organically. This happened to my – really amateur and put together in 10 minutes – video here which resulted in an influx in page likes and a lot of traffic to my website.
The thing you need to know about Facebook boosting, is the algorithms and rules are ever-changing. They’re funny about making claims in your posts now and if you don’t meet the strict criteria that they have, your post won’t be accepted and you’ll be unable to boost it. Also, at the end of the day, with Facebook boosting, the house always wins. Facebook will profit from your investment even if your campaign does not convert into sales.
Want to know more? By all means send me a message or write in the comments any questions you have!
Want to make some moola and garner interest in your business? Then take time to learn how to navigate Social Media and harness it to boost your exposure. The important thing though, is getting the RIGHT people to find you. So don’t be too concerned with numbers at this stage, it’s quantity over quality.
Now STOP scrolling your newsfeed and checking your notifications, get to work on your business and grab those new customers!
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