Social media for business is no longer optional but, an essential way for brands to reach global audiences, gain valuable insights and grow. Social media offers powerful marketing tools and an expansive potential reach that can be a goldmine for businesses. However, having social media presence is not enough due to the declining organic reach and growing competition. Establishing identity and a sense of community is the key to standing out on social media for business.
The more your business stands out, the higher your chances of attracting customers. However, beginners may not know the most effective ways to integrate social media into their overall strategies. Although many businesses understand the importance of social media marketing, it is just a piece of the pie. You also need holistic approaches that leverage the channel to support all the aspects of your business.
The following guide offers practical strategies and tips on how to use social media for business success.
How Social Media Can Help your Business
Several businesses have become used to traditional marketing channels to promote their brands and products to customers. However, the introduction of social media has completely changed the game. Every business is now competing to have a presence on social media as the most effective way to reach global consumers. Here is why you should start using social media for business.
Increase Brand Awareness
Using social media for business provides an opportunity for creating and sharing content to raise awareness about your brand. Consistently posting relevant and engaging content can enable you to quickly put your brand on the map.
For example, Parody Magazine, Hot Teen used Instagram to build an audience before launching their first issue. It worked quite well because the first step in every business plan should be to make sure that people know you exist.
Direct Engagements with Customers
Social media platforms can offer you a direct line of communication with your customers. Apps such as X, Facebook and Instagram allow businesses to interact with their audiences directly and in public ways that feel more responsive and personal that emails or telephone calls.
Social media establishes a two-way communication channel between brands and their audiences, ensuring meaningful connections. Businesses can use that opportunity to answer customer queries, address customer service concerns and build stronger relationships with customers.
Generate New Sales Leads
Social media is home to millions of potential customers, all just waiting to be triggered. It not only presents avenues for building relationships and practicing social selling but, also advertising and targeting options for businesses. Using social media for business offers incredible tools for targeting and reaching specific audiences based on demographics, interests and behaviors.
Gather Real Time Insights
Social media platforms are treasure troves of data points that are accessible to all users. Thus, integrating social media into your business strategy can help with learning about your audience’s pain points and interests based on their conversations. Social media analytics tools and social listening can provide incredible intel for effective market research. The insights can enable you to make informed decisions about your brand, products and services.
Strategies for Using Social Media for Business
Indeed, social media can help your business is several ways. However, you must know how to implement it to ensure success. Here are essential tips and practical strategies on how to use social media for business.
Choose the Right Social Platforms for Your Brand
Implementing social media for business does not mean that you must have a presence on all social media platforms. Sometimes, trying to be a jack of all trades is only a waste of time and efforts. For example, having a presence on Facebook is a must if you are targeting an older demographic but, it may not generate the best results if you are using TikTok. Here are the best social platforms for ecommerce brands.
Instagram marketing is an incredible strategy for brands seeking to reach millennial buyers. With its over 1.4 billion monthly active users, Instagram is ideal for visual brands that can share captivating, educational and entertaining static and video content. IG is a must for beauty and fashion brands but, it can also work great for various businesses including pet brands and bookstores. Here are additional tips for successful Instagram marketing.
- Use high quality content with stunning visual appeal
- Use Instagram Stories to share behind-the-scenes content and time-sensitive offers
- Opt for Instagram Reels to showcase short-form video content
- Engage your audience through comments and direct messages
The following example shows one of the best Instagram marketing campaigns by, Disney.
Facebook boasts more than 3 billion monthly active users. It is mainly ideal for reaching older demographics but, is also popular with people aged 25 to 34 years old. Facebook is a great place to generate business reviews and ratings and, connect with customers directly. Brands with established e-commerce platforms such as Shopify can easily integrate IG and Facebook to sell directly in-app. Here is what works on Facebook.
- Share diverse content types including images, videos and links
- Use Facebook Groups to build communities around your brand
- Leverage Facebook Live to facilitate real-time engagements
- Use Facebook Ads for targeted marketing campaigns
TikTok
TikTok is home to robust engagements and open mindedness. It is rapidly becoming the destination for product discovery where users are conditioned to see brand content and sponsored videos from various creators. In a recent study, 44% of Gen Z TikTok users say that the app helped them to discover new things. TikTok marketing is where you need to be if you want to target younger audiences. Here are some of the best practices for using social media for business on TikTok.
- Create authentic, entertaining and trendy content
- Take part in popular challenges and use trending sounds
- Collaborate with TikTok influencers for a wider reach
- Use hashtags strategically to increase your chances of being discovered
- Focus on short-form, precise and entertaining video content.
Here is an example of one of the best TikTok marketimng campaigns by Duolingo.
YouTube
YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world. It is not only an ideal platform for best-of lists, product demos and unboxings but, also a search engine where users can find answers to some of their questions. That makes it an effective social media marketing opportunity for brands. YouTube users spend an average of 28 hours and five minutes every month watching videos on the platform.
However, you should create content that adds value to your customers and optimize it for search to get the most of YouTube marketing. Here are essential tips for success.
- Create high quality and informative video content
- Use eye-catching thumbnails to boost click-through rates
- Engage with your audience in the comments section
- Use YouTube Shorts for short-form videos.
Apart from the channels mentioned above, there are other platforms that you can also use to implement social media for business. Other social platforms to also consider include Pinterest, LinkedIn and Pinterest. Depending on your audience and their location, you may also realize social media success on smaller and niche social platforms.
Be Original
Originality is essential if you want to stand out on social media. You can quickly drive engagements on social media by jumping onto trends and recreating popular memes. And, you should not abandon those approaches. However, you also need a publishing strategy that is unique to your business to succeed in the social media landscape.
According to a 2024 Content Benchmarks Report, original content is one of the main elements that make a brand memorable on social media. So, come with unique and creative ways to get your messages across for maximum reach and engagements.
Show your Products/ Services in Action
Remember using social media for business is not only to boost your brand’s presence but, also generate sales leads and sell your products or services. Thus, you should be keen to create original content that shows your products or services in action. That is the best way to compel your audiences to make purchases.
While the ultimate goal of marketing or selling your products or services on social media is to boost sales, your content should not be too promotional. Instead, it should be both informative and entertaining. A past report established most social media users find that edutainment is the most engaging type of content.
Create content that show what your product or service is capable of doing. Think of content types such as product demos, how-to-videos, walkthroughs and tests to create edutainment in your next social media posts.
Collaborate with Influencers
Social media has over the years produced their own caliber of celebrities. They are individuals with expertise, influence and loyal audiences. And, savvy businesses have found ways to tap into that power and influence to grow their brands and sell products. The influencer does not have to be someone with a big name and hundreds of thousands of followers to make an impact on your business.
In the following example, Summer Fridays partnered with infleuncer, Alexis Conway in an Instagram Reel. It showcases the influencer’s beauty routine using the brand’s beauty products.
Businesses with social media presence should consider collaborating with influencers for campaigns or long-term brand ambassador programs. Partnerships can give you the much needed exposure to build a huge social media following and community around your brand. However, you should team up with influencers who actually love your brand and its products. Give your partners the create freedom to integrate their personality and voice into the sponsored content.
Engage with the Social Community
Your posts are not the only way to stamp your presence on social media. The comments section is the place to be if you really want to make an impact on your audience.
Speak up whenever people ask questions or make notable comments. Doing so turns social media from a broadcast into a conversation. Joining in on the chatter on other people’s posts offers more opportunities for engagements with audiences.
You should practice social listening to catch mentions of your brand or posts that are relevant to your expertise. It will help you to keep a pulse on the happenings to avoid being left behind.
Make it a habit to a respond promptly to comments, messages and any mentions of your brand. Encourage discussions and interactions on your posts. Engaging with your audience enables you to build trust and cultivate a sense of loyalty. Here are proven strategies to drive engagements and go viral on social media.
Avoid posts that are too promotional. Instead, seek to build genuine connections. Try to brighten someone’s day by teaching them something new or giving them a moment to relate to. That will significantly boost your chances of making a lasting impression and gaining new followers.
Drive Social Growth with Superior Social Boost
This article has discussed the best strategies and tips for using social media for business. It has also outlined the incredible benefits of integrating social media into your business strategy. However, you need a significant social media presence and engagement to ensure success. And, that is where Superior Social Boost comes in. We help brands and businesses to drive social growth on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, X/ Twitter, YouTube and Google Business. Talk to us today for customized packages to boost your social media reach and engagements organically.