Any SEO firm will tell you that social media is a good tool to use in marketing your business. It’s free, accessible, effective, and reaches your target market and beyond. Compared to using social media for personal reasons, you need to take a different approach to handle a business account. You might have a difficult time transitioning to using it for business purposes.
Additionally, there are different social media platforms that work well for networking and marketing: Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google+, Instagram, and YouTube. But how do you utilize these sites to promote your business?
What You Shouldn’t Do
Personal social media accounts are different from the ones used for businesses. Although you’ll essentially be using the same platforms, there are some “don’ts” you need to avoid.
- Don’t make your posts too long. A glance at a long post would prompt your audience to scroll past it. This is why Twitter is a popular site for promoting onsite content.
Don’t be too technical. If you can help it, avoid Jargon at all times. It’s like sharing an inside joke with someone out of the loop. They won’t get it.
- Don’t delete or ignore comments, especially the negative ones. People will notice and it will send a message that you don’t care. Treat comments as you would phone calls or emails from clients. Take the time to make a professional and thoughtful response.
- Don’t let your intern handle the account unless it’s part of their job description. However, if there’s a need for their assistance, ensure that you review before posting. If you can’t personally handle the account, assign the task to someone who knows the company well.
- Don’t use too many sites. Don’t bite more than you can chew by opening multiple accounts and then abandoning them. Only use platforms you can handle and have the time to maintain and develop.
- Don’t create a page or account if you don’t plan on posting consistently.
What You Should Do
These are things you should do every day in order to develop a good social media page:
- Log in to your account. Although it’s a simple task, most entrepreneurs forget that this is not a personal account and don’t open their company’s social media accounts every day. Do this at the start of your day.
Reply to followers’ direct interactions. This may be through a message on Facebook, a post on your Facebook wall, a direct message on Twitter, and replies that tag you.
- Post stimulating content that encourages conversation. Don’t sell your company 100% of the time. Limit sales pitches and instead bank on engaging posts for your pages (e.g., an interesting article, a riveting photo, an inspiring quote, or a provocative question).
- Search for your company’s branded terms. These also include abbreviations and common misspellings. Look for users who are not directly connected to you but mention your company. Then respond to their queries or reviews.
- Use other marketing tools alongside your social media campaign. No man is an island and no marketing strategy can also stand alone. Maximize your social media pages by integrating other platforms into your campaign and ensuring that you’re only employing organic SEO.
If you have a hard time starting, maintaining, or simply need help with social media for your company, don’t be afraid to ask assistance from a reputable SEO company.
