Social Media for Small Businesses

As part of our discussion on growing your small business, we talked about the importance of marketing. We grew our tiny little inventory system for small business from 20 customers to thousands simply by getting the word out. If you missed our post click here. Part of marketing for the kind of company that you want to be has to include social media. According to a recent LinkedIn study posted on Entrepreneur.com, 81% of the nearly 1,000 small business owners that they polled are using social media to promote their businesses. 94% are using social media for marketing purposes, 49% use it for educational purposes.  As we stated in our last marketing tips post - your customers are online and they expect you to be there as well and not just in website form. Increasingly, your customers are liking things on Facebook, tweeting comments about products and services on Twitter, and pinning things on Pinterest. If you’re not there, they are highly likely to come across someone else who does what you do.

Managing your social media presence is work and it does take time but the results will be well worth it in the end. There is no fast way to build up a social media following. It takes time and effort to gain the respect and trust of your followers. For example, no one would trust an inventory system for small business could be free unless they got to know us through social interactions. Otherwise, our loyal customers may have never gotten started using what's become the world's best inventory system for small business.

When you’re just starting out try to build relationships with others in your niche. Follow them, comment on their posts, and try to add value with your responses. Be positive in your postings and positive results will follow. Be supportive of others and try to establish partnerships rather than competitions. Working together can provide better results for everyone involved.

Be consistent. If you post regularly people will get used to seeing you online. They may even look forward to your latest news or advice. Building these relationships can have long term benefits. If on the other hand, you are here today and then MIA for weeks or months at a time you have lost your audience and your chance to create a relationship with your customers.

Keep it fun. Yes, your small business is a serious venture but you don’t want your followers to feel like they are back in school when they interact with you. Posting fun, lighthearted comments and blogs can really engage your audience and keep them coming back for more.

Social media is a very powerful marketing and relationship tool. It is low cost to implement - although you have to consider your time - and it can provide significant results in a short amount of time. It isn’t a fast track to success and results aren’t guaranteed, but with some time, effort and a commitment to making it work you can achieve your marketing goals. The key is to give before you get. We knew this to be true so that why we made our inventory system for small business free to use. Eventually, we may sell advertising space, but there will never be a charge for Stockpile and its standard feature set.

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