A Guest Post by Catrin Cooper
Small business owners envy big brands on social media because of their success. As a small business owner, you may want to imitate what those big brands are doing when it comes to reaching out to their customers on social media.
Unfortunately, your budget is the problem.
Fortunately, you can adapt a few social media strategies that big brands are using and implement them to your small business. With these tricks, you don’t need to be a huge name first to create stunning content that gets shares and likes.
1. Be Personal and Authentic
Most companies, big or small, have a problem being authentic in their social media marketing campaign.
Just take a look at what Purina did. Before, Purina, a big brand that people trust, had trouble being authentic on social media. It has resulted in a decrease in sales.
But when they changed their tactics and created the “Trust” campaign, it has positively affected its brand. Their target audience felt a personal connection with the brand, thereby, leading to a boom in their social media campaign.
The said campaign was about giving its followers some behind-the-scenes photos of Purina employees and fans with their beloved pets. The brand received millions of impressions and mentions.
You, too, can get personal for your business. To do so, you need to maintain your company’s voice. Then, to make your brand look more genuine, make fun of it. But do it gently.
Share some behind the scenes. By being transparent to your customers and followers, you’re showing to them your human side. And don’t forget to include some breaking news about your brand, like launching a product or service.
To measure your success, use a social media tool that lets you listen what people are talking about your company. When you start being authentic and transparent, you can surely see an increase in mentions and likes, as well as shares.
2. Use Social Media to Answer Your Customers’ Questions
One excellent example for this is the Southwest Airlines. Although the company is known for its delayed flights and other flight-related issues, it offers quick information to their customers through social media channels.
The company launched a social media channel where its customers can access and tell their concerns or issues and ask questions. It uses social media monitoring tools to know what things are being said about its company.
After listening and monitoring, it reaches out to the customers directly and keeps them updated. It offers details about events and other issues related to the company.
What you can learn from Southwest Airlines is that you can go social with your customer support.
You can’t afford to employ a team of customer service individuals to answer your customers’ questions. However, you can use a tool that discovers mentions and finds out if your clients have questions about your company or other things related to your business.
Once you’ve found these issues, you could answer them through your social media channel. It saves time and helps make your brand stand out.
When your target market knows that you can be easily accessed on social media, they’ll no longer use the phone to call you. Instead, they’ll ask questions through your social media channels.
3. Take Advantage of Video
Video marketing is a powerful way to attract your audience. It’s one of the reasons YouTube has millions of visitors per day. One of the companies that utilize video marketing on social media is Coca-Cola.
During its campaign to fight prejudice, the company invited people to a Ramadan Iftar. It wasn’t an ordinary event because the invitees were placed in complete darkness.
They didn’t know how different they were. But they interacted. However, when the lights came on, they realized that they all looked different.
At the end of the video, the company declared that labels aren’t for people. Instead, they’re for cans. It was an emotional statement that made a positive impact. It was a successful social media campaign that garnered 18 million views.
For your small business, you can create your own video using your smartphone. What kind of video? If you’re launching a product, make a video about the proper ways to use it.
When you publish it, make sure to add title tag and description. If you have the budget, utilize YouTube and Facebook ads. To know how it’s performing, use Google Analytics or the social media channel’s analytics or insights.
4. Reach Out to Influencers
Whether you like it or not, influencer marketing is a trend that you can’t ignore. Your followers are more likely to purchase something from you if an influencer endorses the product. It serves as social proof.
Starbucks is one of the companies that utilize this kind of social media marketing campaign through its Frappucino Summer of Fun campaign.
Your company may not be as big as Starbucks, but it doesn’t mean you can’t have internal brand advocates.
Start creating a healthy workplace culture. Train your employees to maximize social media channels. Build leaders who’ll be on the front lines of your campaign. Don’t forget to track your metrics to find out if your target market is, indeed, interacting with your brand.
