So, your startup has Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. You feel pretty good about your online presence though you don’t post very often. It’s enough to just create the accounts and let people come to you, right?
Wrong!
It’s all in the name: To truly build your online presence, you need to make an effort to be social. If you don’t engage with your followers, they won’t engage with you—in fact, they might even be more inclined to click on the accounts of your competitors, especially if it looks like there is more happening on those pages. Part of the appeal of social media is a personal connection with a business or a brand. After all, that’s how the entire industry of influencers functions!
Here are some statistics that might surprise you:
- Approximately 4.62 billion people worldwide are on some form of social media. That’s 58.4% of the world’s population!
- Those people tend to spend an average of around 2.5 hours per day on social media.
- COVID-19 increased the number of people who use social media (and for longer periods of time).
Those are massive figures. With a potential client base that huge, it’s become increasingly important to focus your time and energy on your socials and do the majority of your advertising online.
Benefits of having a social media presence
- Brand awareness: Social media accounts make sure everyone knows your name.
- Staying relevant: If you are on the newest social media sites, people will see that you pay attention to the market.
- Greater trust: The more authentic and genuine you are, the more potential customers will trust you and your brand.
- Clicks: It will be much easier to direct traffic to your website if you meet people on the social media platform they already frequent.
- Reputation management: You get the first and last word concerning your brand.
Sounds great! So, how can I enhance my business’s online presence?
- Create shareable content
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By “shareable,” we mean something that someone instantly wants to pass along to their friends, family, and followers (the 3 Fs you are always trying to reach). You want eyes on your brand. Post photos that could resonate with people. Create how-to lists or offer actionable advice. If people find your content useful or relatable, they are more likely to share it.
- Retweet, repost, respond
Make sure you interact not only with your followers but also with industry titans and individuals or brands you admire. This shows your brand’s values and connects you with more people. Reply to comments and repost content related to your brand.
- Post something every day
Consistency is key! Customers want to know that you’re in it for the long haul and that your team genuinely cares about your brand. Post every day (or at least a few times a week) and make sure to leave that comment section open. This will help build credibility, and since content becomes obsolete so rapidly these days, you want to stay at the forefront of everyone’s mind.
- Use the tools
One great aspect of social media is that there are already so many resources for businesses built into the platforms. Play around with polls. Ask some questions in your Instagram story. Try out a survey using Facebook reactions (e.g., “If you like X product better, use the angry react!”). When people feel that they have a voice, they will be more engaged with the brand as a whole.
- Branch out
Still don’t have a TikTok? Get one! Hire a designated social media marketer and run a social media campaign (here’s some inspiration). Keep up with trending hashtags and pay attention to what’s going viral. If you’re only posting promotions, try your hand at creating a video. If you always post articles, why not attempt a meme? Branching out into different content types keeps your brand fresh.
So, there you have it. At a party, no one goes over to talk to that person in the corner shyly holding a drink and staring at their feet. People want to interact with the life of the party instead of someone who is present but not really there.
Don’t be that business standing in the corner of the social media party. Go mingle!
