The number of worldwide users on social media is projected to hit a whopping 3.02 billion active users per month by 2021. That’s one-third of the world’s entire population! So, it’s obvious that social media, more and more, is engaging the majority of the world’s citizenry.
That means if you own a business and you’re not focused on building a strong brand presence on social media this year, your customers already are or soon will be choosing your competitors.
The problem most brands face with social media isn’t whether or not to take advantage of it, but how to take advantage of it. With Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, and other platforms, plus videos, blogs, etc. as options for online marketing these days, an obvious observation is that brands are struggling to identify the most profitable social media strategy to use for their business.
Here are a couple of strategies for using social media to fuel business growth this year:
Use social media to drive traffic to your e-store
If you have an e-commerce business, scale your business quickly by using targeted Facebook advertising to drive more traffic to your store.
With over 1.4 billion active Facebook users every day, the problem isn’t whether or not your customers are scrolling. They are, but that doesn’t mean they’ll find your Facebook page or convert to paying customers.
You have to market to them in a way that makes them want to buy, and that’s achieved by targeting the right kind of people with the right kind of offer.
Use videos to keep your audience engaged and growing
Open your favorite social media platform. You’ll notice your feed is full of video content instead of text and images. In fact, algorithms have changed, evolving to prefer video content over other content formats. And that’s something the leading brands have noticed. A whopping 86 percent of businesses already use video on their website, and 77 percent use video on social media.
Consider sharing an authentic behind-the-scenes look at your life. Document your company’s next product launch. Show your followers what it’s like to work for your company, etc. The bottom line: If you’re not using videos on social media, your customers are becoming unengaged, fast.
Build brand awareness by using influencers
If you can get your product or service publicly vouched by a trusted authority in your niche, your sales can skyrocket overnight.
One study showed that 22 percent of marketers surveyed already considered influencer marketing the most cost-effective way of obtaining new customers.
Partnering with influencers on social media can be one of the most profitable decisions you make for your business this year. Influencers are now widely considered more relatable than celebrities. That’s why consumers turn to their favorite models and gurus for advice on what to buy.
Provide value before asking for anything in return
Never forget that customers hate being “sold” to, but love to buy. One sure-fire way to have your customers line up to do that is to provide a massive amount of free value before asking for a sale.
If you want to build engaged brand followers on social media who love you and love buying from you, provide content that solves their problems and shows that you care about them before asking for a sale. You’ll quickly build a pool of loyal fans who buy from you over and over again.
Tell your brand story and differentiate from the competition
Everyone loves a good story. In fact, every single human being makes decisions based on emotion and justifies with logic.
This means, if you want your brand to stand the test of time, you need to be telling your brand’s story across social media to differentiate yourself from competitors, build deep connections and trust with customers and earn your customers’ loyalty.
No matter how many social media transformations we see in the next decade, we humans are going to be drawn to the same fundamental things. This means customers being drawn to stories they can relate to and brands they can deeply connect with.
In this context, brand storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to differentiate yourself, connect with your customers, increase brand loyalty and sell your vision.
Assess your company’s current problems and find out how you can fill the gaps. What’s the key to using social media to drive sales is the willingness to experiment until you find what works best for your brand.