Why Social Media Marketing Could Be the Best Thing You Do For Your Business This Year
Seventy-three percent of small businesses now invest in social media marketing, which sounds great on paper. But this means 27 percent of small businesses don’t. That’s almost one in three. Even in 2019, these businesses don’t advertise their products on Facebook. Or communicate with customers on Twitter. Or share content on Instagram.
What gives?
Here’s the kicker: These businesses are missing out sales. Potentially, hundreds of thousands of dollars of sales. Kinda stupid, right?
Are you one of the 27 percent? One of the millions of small businesses who don’t use social media marketing to generate leads? Or engage with customers? Or share content?
If you are, it’s time to make a change.
Here are three benefits of social media marketing for small businesses like yours.
1. Generate More Leads
Websites like Facebook and Twitter are awesome for lead generation. Social media marketing usually sits at the top of the marketing funnel — when prospects are finding out about your products and services. There’s no “hard sell” at this stage. You’re simply using social media to raise awareness and introduce your brand to potential new leads.
This might all sound expensive, but it’s not. In fact, research shows that 24 percent of businesses increased revenue when they used social media marketing for lead generation.
But how can you do it properly?
Whatever you do, give leads a reason to follow you on social media.
2. Improve Customer Satisfaction
Social media is more than just a marketing tool. It can be great for customer service, too. Think about this: 80 percent of consumers use social to engage with brands. That’s a lot of people! How can you keep all of these customers happy, though?
When it comes to customer service and satisfaction, the key to good social media management is communication. If a disgruntled customer posts a complaint on your Facebook wall, for example, resolve the situation immediately. This way, potential leads will see that you value customer service as much as they do.
You can also use social media to facilitate customer service processes, such as order fulfillment. Use Instagram’s direct message feature, for example, to notify a customer about a shipping delay. This could improve customer satisfaction significantly.
3. Enhance Engagement
No other digital marketing method will enhance engagement like social media. This is just one of the reasons why 49 percent of small businesses say that social media marketing proves effective.
If you want to boost engagement on social media, communicate with prospects. Encourage them to like your posts, share your videos, re-tweet your photos. This is not a one-sided thing, though. In order to foster new relationships with potential customers, do the same thing back: Like, share, re-tweet, etc.
“Remember, social media is meant to be social. I know. Obvious, right? But like I said, it’s amazing how many businesses get this wrong,” says Hootsuite.
These are just three benefits of social media marketing in 2019. If you haven’t created a social media strategy yet, what are you waiting for? You could move more customers through your sales funnel, boost revenue, and increase your digital presence. Better yet, NetBlaze can do the whole thing for you at an affordable price. Click here to find out more.