The Guide to Using Social Media Marketing in 2013

When it comes to social media, most people are players. They have a personal profile that they use to connect with friends, share tidbits of their day and upload pictures from their life. However, when you are a small business, social media has really important benefits to offer to you as well. What do you need to know when you decide to bring your small business to the social media world, and how can it help with your marketing?

Establishing a Network

One of the best ways to get noticed on sites such as Facebook is to have a lot of “likes” and “shares.” Look for other businesses in the community that might be willing to share your page. Choosing ones that offer the same exact products or services you do is not the best idea because then you’ll be in competition. However, if your business makes cakes for special occasions, you should share the information for the store from which you purchase the ingredients. Ask the store owner if he or she will do the same. Local businesses are often quite willing to help one another out because they realize the struggle presented to them.

Announcing In-Store Promotions and Events

When you’re part of a major business that spans across the states and even countries, it’s practically in possible to host these types of events, but small businesses have an advantage here. Maybe you want to have a raffle during the Christmas season for a specialty type of cookie mix. Inform people that if they come down to the store during certain hours and make a purchase, they will automatically be entered for the raffle. This is a way to keep up the small business appeal while still enticing people to come to your shop. You can also use this strategy for events. For example, your small business might have a day where all of the profits are donated to a local charity.

Sharing Opportunities and Stories

Another benefit of being a small business is that clients really do want to personally connect with you. They see you, the owner, walking around the store when they come in to shop, and they are just as happy to see you on Facebook or Twitter. When clients feel like they can actually connect with the owner of a shop, they are generally much happier using the store. They know if there is a problem, they will receive a prompt response. Furthermore, they can also write on your page to say how great everything is, and this, too, is a form of marketing.

“Like” Prizes

Announce on your page that you will be offering a prize to anyone who can show proof that he or she liked your Facebook page. The prize does not necessarily have to be huge; it could be a free sample of a muffin or a taste of a new ice cream flavor. Whatever prize you decide upon, all of the friends of the person who liked the page will now also have the possibility of viewing the page. Furthermore, people will want to come down to the store to cash in on their prizes. Truly, when you use social media, marketing is possible in so many different forms.

Using social media to market your goods and services is really a wise idea, especially in a century when people have constant access to their phones. No matter where they are, they will be able to keep in touch with your business, stay aware of what the latest happenings are and head down to the shop as soon as they notice something intriguing.

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