Business promotion can be a big time waster. Not all promotional activities are a waste of time, though, just the ones that don’t show the value of your business. Unfortunately, it’s not always so clear what your audience would consider valuable and how to “show it” and not just tell it.
Many small-business owners get stuck in a cycle of just getting their name and products out there without knowing the best strategy to use. Social media is one area this happens easily. Social platforms of all types and sizes have the potential to be a steady source of traffic and audience growth. You just have to discover how to attract and engage the segment of those platform users that are looking for what you have to offer.
Determine What You Want to Achieve
Before you start creating content or posting on social media, it’s important to define your goals and target audience. What do you want to achieve with your social media presence? Are you looking to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or generate leads? While all of these are business goals in general, your promotional strategy on social media should focus on one of these as your main purpose on a specific platform.
Once you have a clear understanding of your goals, you can tailor your content and messaging to appeal to your target audience. Who are your ideal customers? What are their interests, pain points, and behaviors? Understanding your target audience will help you create content that resonates with them and drives engagement.
Analyze Data to Improve Results
Tracking your success and adjusting your strategy accordingly is vital to being effective on social media. Use analytics tools to monitor your engagement, reach, and conversion rates, and identify which types of content and campaigns are resonating with your audience. This will help you make data-driven decisions about where to focus your efforts and how to optimize your content for maximum impact. Don’t rely on guesswork or assumptions—use the data at your disposal to fine-tune your approach and stay ahead of the competition.
Don’t just post and forget. Take the time to analyze your results and make changes as needed.
You can also rely on survey data that has been gathered through your own efforts or the efforts of others to better understand the perspectives and behaviors of your potential customers. Professional market survey reports are compiled from the direct responses of individuals in a specific market. This type of data gives you a clear direction on how you can reach the market with the right type of posts, using graphics and text in a way that appeals to their priorities and preferences.
It’s Not about Your Business
While it’s important to showcase your products or services on social media, it’s equally important not to over-promote them. Your followers don’t want to be bombarded with constant sales pitches and advertisements. Instead, focus on creating valuable content that educates, entertains, or inspires your audience. This will help build trust and loyalty and ultimately lead to more sales in the long run. Remember, social media is about building relationships, not just making sales.
Even if you have determined that your platform goal is to generate more traffic to your website, you should encourage your followers to go to your online location because you have more there to educate, entertain, or inspire them. Include free offers on the pages you’re directing traffic to. Once you have potential customers on your email list, you can nurture and grow that relationship to also include the occasional product promotion. Learn more about our advertising options through our mobile app and online locations to help you reach the segment of the homeschooling market that is right for your business.
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