5 Rules of Social Media for Small Business Owners
DON’T take on more platforms than you can handle.
You don’t need to do it all.
Putting so-so effort into 5 different social media platforms is time-consuming and often a waste of resources. Instead, focus in on just 1-2 to start, and do them VERY well.
And before you dive into the next-big-platform, do some digging.
Is your audience there?
How is the organic reach & growth?
Does the platform allow your prospects to actually convert?
DO be consistent & engaging on the platform(s) you choose.
No slimy overnight growth hack is going to actually get you high quality followers or meaningful traffic.
Be consistent. Talk with your audience. Interact with relevant communities regularly.
DO use link tracking and measure what works and what doesn’t.
Stop guessing how effective your social media is -- set up your Google Analytics and a few tracked UTM links and see for yourself.
With the right analytic tools, you can better determine what platforms deserve more of your time & plan accordingly.
Semi-regular deep dives into some of the finer details can keep you on the right path. You may want to record things like:
Do videos or images perform better?
What kind of content gets the most shares/reposts?
What kind of content brings the best traffic to your website?
DO keep it simple: set up templates when possible.
Consistent branding isn’t boring, it’s effective.
Set up a few branded templates for the resources you regularly share.
It’s a win-win. You save time (& money, if you’re working with a designer). Your clients are able to easily pick your content out from a crowded feed.
DON’T rely only on social media marketing.
You don’t own your social media audiences: Facebook, Microsoft, and Google do. (Just look at all the Tik Tok influencers who scrambled to bring their audiences elsewhere this summer!)
So in addition to a killer social media presence, build out your own email lists. Make sure your website is kick-ass and regularly updated. Consider guesting on podcasts, hosting webinars and virtual events, and partnering with like-minded businesses. Social media is important, but not all that marketing is!