Social Media Promotion For Small Business Owners

It's tough being a small business. A small business usually means having a smaller advertising budget than the big guys. It can be hard to compete against those companies who seem to have no lack of funds to saturate their brand everywhere. Fortunately, social media is potentially a great equalizer in the quest for the hearts and minds (and dollars!) of the general public. Here are some tips and ideas for how a small business can create an effective social media promotion. Social media promotions can turn your small business into a big player Factor In A Community The article "Effective Social Media Strategies For Small Business Owners" tells us that communities are important in social media circles, and that small business owners should seek out pre-existing groups whose interests coincide with the business' focus. A dog grooming and daycare service should look for dog owner groups, pages devoted to certain breeds, and similar communities. If there isn't a community, then help start one. This generally entails beginning slowly, seeking out like-minded people, and bringing them together on a social network page. Start Up A Discussion Consider posting a question that is sure to spark an ongoing conversation. Harkening back to the dog business example, perhaps a poll on favorite breeds, or asking a question like "Is there such thing as a hopelessly untrainable dog?". Balance Your Content To foster the image of a community member and not come across as just some sales huckster, you have to avoid the temptation of having all of your content constantly screaming about your business. So, make sure that when you post content, only one message in six should actually be a total advertisement. The rest of the messages should be content that relates to your business, and is more informative or entertaining. Remember, it's all about building an image and a community, and these things take time. And if it looks like these ideas overlap and interlock, it's because they do! It's all related. Think Locally, Act..um..Locally! It's called location-based marketing, and it can benefit from a little boost courtesy of social media. Naturally, this assumes that your small business has an actual physical location. If it does, then provide incentives and rewards for people who visit your business, not simply accessing your website. Maybe it's a coupon that's good only for in-store visits or even something as staggeringly simple as "The first 100 customers through the door get this nifty swag!". Hold Online Contests Moving away from the world of brick and mortar, we turn our attention back to the online community. Everyone loves a good contest. For instance, take advantage of the preponderance of video in social media by holding a contest for the best video that relates to your business. If you don't want to mess with video (and want to make it even easier for users to participate), consider some kind of selfie or photo-bombing contest, again somehow calling attention to your business, services, or products. Give people the chance to get creative. Or perhaps you can hold a competition to see who can get the most friends to sign up for your email or Twitter blasts. This not only satisfies people's desire to compete and win cool stuff, it gets you a big database full of contacts and potential customers. Social media can really boost your small business' performance, but make sure you tailor your promotions to your target audience. For instance, if your clientele skews on the older side, you may want to read "How to Target Baby Boomers with Your Social Media Management Plan".