Some business owners say that using social media is a waste of time. Well, it can be if you use the wrong tactics. If used tactfully and professionally, social media can be a potential door opener for your business to a more direct connection with potentially important customers.
However, if you have decided to use social media, it’s of the essence to use the correct tactics to avoid wasting your precious time. Here are some of the best tips on marketing yourself as a professional on social media.
Table of Contents
● Study the Social Media Platforms
Doing some ‘reconnaissance’ to narrow down which channel or channels to utilize is very important. Doing this may sound counterintuitive and may mean spending some of your time online, but it’s worthwhile. You may decide to source advice from other entrepreneurs who have successfully used social media or get advice from professionals who will guide you based on your target clients.
● Decide the Social Media Channels to Prioritize
You are not going to use only one social media platform. Therefore, after doing your study and consultations, you should prioritize the channels from the one you’ll heavily use to the least prioritized one. Assign number one priority to the social media platforms where your target customers spend most of their time.
Choosing the social media platforms that will effectively market your products is vital. For example, if you are a reseller of beauty products, social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook will be better platforms for you. Instagram is more visual-oriented, and to efficiently use it, you can look for an online Instagram marketing course or use how-to tutorials on YouTube.
On the other hand, if your products are more IT-based items, Instagram won’t be the right channel for you, but platforms like Twitter will be the best fit.
After narrowing down the list of the social media channels you will use, you can now rank them in order of priority, with the one that will get more of your time on top. Effective ranking of these channels in order of priority will save you a lot of time because you’ll be aware of which channels to give more time to and which ones to let go of eventually.
Joint the selected social media sites and create a business account using a professional bio by clearly highlighting your unique value proposition- what makes your business special. Don’t forget to provide the relevant details about your business, like your geographical location and how a customer can contact you. Additionally, provide a backlink to your professionally designed website.
● Analyze Your Competitors
Performing market intelligence on your competitors is the most effective way of fine-tuning your product quality and marketing strategy to grow your brand. Gather intel on what your competitors are doing on social media and which product of theirs is getting more clicks and views on the platforms that you selected. You need to find out how well each is doing on social media in terms of their number of followers and engagement. Improve what works for them and leverage on their failures.
● Source for Relevant Influencers
Irrespective of your type of business, there is always an influencer with a large following. Follow the influencers, interact with their posts and engage them and their community to determine if their followers are the correct group for your products. Over time, they could recommend some of your products to their followers, which will boost and generate more leads for your business. If their charges don’t make you break the bank, you could also reach out to some influencers to recommend your products for pay.
Marketing professionally on social media requires patience and strategy. To effectively utilize these platforms, it’s of the essence to create a realistic social media plan by implementing what we have already discussed. Further, it would be best to determine what you are going to post and how often you intend to post, and then develop a posting schedule. The golden rule of social media marketing is to stay professional, and calm and not get dragged into unnecessary exchanges on social media. Yes, you will encounter many nasty people on social media but remember you are a brand and should interact like one.
