Marketing is vital for every small business. How will people know about your business if you don't market it? Social media marketing is a proven way to share your business message. It's also very cost-effective compared to other marketing media outlets. Step up your social media game with the below tips.

1. Discover Your Target Markets' Favorite Platforms

In order to reach your ideal customer, you have to know where they spend time online. Social media is a popular past time for many. To make the most out of your marketing efforts, focus your message in places that your ideal customer will view it. While it's important to know where your potential customers are, you also don't want to put all of your efforts on one specific social media platform. Each social platform has a specific user demographic. It's best to have a wide range of platforms in your marketing plan to maximize your reach.

2. Focus On Your Marketing Goals

What is the ultimate goal with your marketing efforts? The end goal for most businesses is to sell a product/service but try to dig deeper when it comes to your marketing goals. Do customers buy via your website? Do they call in to contact your business? Think about where you're driving traffic with your social media marketing strategy. Ensure this strategy is leading your customers where they can find further information. Many times, this information is located on your website and that's where you should be driving your social media traffic.

3. Keep it Consistent

Consistently sharing your message can help your business in a number of ways. Gain exposure, showcase your business, and even help your business appear to be more reliable -- these are all perks of sharing a consistent message on social media. Someone has become a follower on your platform for a reason -- they want to learn more or see more from your business. Give the people what they want.

4. Learn From Your Past Messages

Check out your previous social media messages. Is there something that seems to go over well? Maybe something that didn't get the reach you were hoping for? Study your past posts before you create a new message. The insight from your previous messages can help you create effective content that people are more likely to interact with.

5. Get Creative With Your Content

People like to be entertained -- especially on social media. We're not saying throw away all business-related messages and strictly go for entertaining the masses. Create content that is interesting, entertaining, and can relate to your business. Have fun creating content and your followers will likely have fun viewing it. When someone is entertained, your message is more likely to stick with them.

6. Track your Progress

It can be hard to measure your goal if you aren't tracking your efforts. Most social media platforms make it easy for businesses to view progress via insights. This information can help you see where your efforts are performing well and where they could use some help. An insight into how your social media is progressing is huge in helping you plan to reach your marketing goals.

7. Strive for a Strong Brand Image

Everything you do is branding your business and it's important you're presenting the right message. In regards to social media, try to keep a consistent image for your marketing techniques. From the images you use to keeping your message uniform, you want people to know it's your brand before they even see what company is making the post.

It's clear that social media is a proven way to share your message but many small business owners find themselves overwhelmed with running a business and trying to handle the social media marketing. MSW Interactive Designs can help your business leverage this effective marketing strategy and more. We assist many small and medium size businesses with this important part of their business marketing plan and we can help yours, too.

Find where your customers spend time and make sure your message is present on that platform. Online is where consumers spend a big chunk of their time. If your message isn't in front of them, you may be missing out big time! As our internet marketing company knows, an online presence is vital for all businesses. But just being online isn't enough -- you have to have a purpose with every message you put out there!

Have a strong website to send customers to. 

The center of your online presence is your website. It's the main hub for your message! Think about your user experience when working on your site. You want to create a place for your customers and future customers can easily navigate to find information about your business. Once you have your website where you want it, don't forget to make regular updates to it. Fresh new content is good -- feature a new product, add a recent testimonial, or swap out a new image of your product or service.

Maximize your exposure on multiple social media platforms. 

Facebook is the king of social media (for the time being) but that can change at any time. It's important to spread your message among other social media platforms. This strategy can help your message reach the most viewers possible. Each platform has a unique user and your message can touch a variety of viewer demographics by being on multiple channels.

Reach customers with regular email newsletters. 

If you collect customer emails (and we suggest you do), a newsletter is a great way to reach them! Many times you have email addresses for people who you've already done business with and this is a fantastic tool to reach them again with your message. Consumers like to do business with someone they've already had a positive experience with and you can feature other services they may be in need of!

Promote specials with regular SMS messages.

Reach your customers in a place they can't ignore - their phones. An astonishing 98% of text messages are read within 2 minutes of sending. That's a QUICK way to reach your customers with your message. The key to a text is to keep it short and to the point. Get the message into the hands of your potential customers, fast!

Keep your message consistent and business information accurate.

With all these marketing platforms and online directory services available, it's important your message is consistent and that your business information is accurate across all platforms. A variance in information can impact your search results in a negative way and lead consumers to contact you in a way that isn't accurate. That's why it's vital to ensure your information is accurate across the board!

Give your business the best shot at great exposure by reaching your customers on a variety of platforms. It's an effective strategy to keep your brand top of mind and keep reminding consumers why you're the best! The key to reaching people on various platforms is to keep it consistent. Make an effort to send out regular messages on each platform your business utilizes to maximize your reach!

A video is an impactful way to reach people AND to capture their attention. It's one of the most underused marketing resources a business has. If you're not using video (and many businesses aren't), we urge you to start utilizing this effective tool to reach your potential customers!

The Statistics Don't Lie:

• YouTube has over a billion users and makes up almost one-third of the total internet users. 
• Over 500 million hours of video is viewed each day on YouTube. 
• One-third of activity online is spent watching videos. 
• The majority (92%) of videos viewed online are shared with others. 
• Videos on social media generate 12 times as many shares than a text and image message. 
• A viewer tends to retain a video message 95% more than reading text. 

Unique Ways to Use Video:

It's obvious that video is important - but what does that mean for your business? Below you can find some unique and effective ways to share your message via video.

Showcase a Testimonial

If you get a rave review from a recent customer or client, ask them to video themselves giving the review. This can often lead to a more personalized testimonial and gives an opportunity to offer some humor that may be hard to convey with only text.

Answer FAQ's

Most businesses have a set of frequently asked questions they receive over and over. Start answering those questions via video! It's a fun way to offer a verbal response versus a text that most people will just glance over. A video answer to top questions asked to your business can actually help customers feel more comfortable with your business and maybe even prompt some unique questions about your product or service!

Provide Product Instruction

If you have a product or procedure that involves instruction, consider a video demo to help customers. Many people are visual learners and this is an effective way to meet the needs of your buyers. Also, it's a fun way to add some personal touches as you make additional contact with someone who has already made a purchase.

Feature An Employee

People like to do business with people they know. Even if a viewer sees someone on a video, they may feel more connected than simply reading an employee bio. Consider featuring your staff members and allowing them some creative freedom as they make a video all about themselves!

Show Off Culture

Many people will support a business that offers a culture they believe in. If you have a culture worth showing off - do it! Your customers like to see what happens in the day-to-day of your business! It can also help gain additional exposure for your business. You never know, you may just attract some new talent while you're at it!

Animate Your Content

Once you have an effective message, amp it up with the use of video! Gear your video toward the subject of your message. This strategy can offer a way to grab the attention of your followers so they are more receptive to your message.

Key Take Away:

The powerful tool of video is being underused. If your venture isn't using video to its full potential, now's the time to make a shift in your content creation. Our internet marketing company can help your business grow your video presence online! When using video for social media, remember it's "social". No perfect high-quality productions are required. Video is EASY and you likely have a quality video camera with you 24/7 -- your phone!