For many small businesses social media presents quite a conundrum. The huge audiences are there for all to see, available to be reached at a tiny fraction of traditional advertising costs. Yet the sheer scale of it; the endless jargon and shifting trends, the bewildering array of platforms, can soon lead you away from a sense of opportunity to one of real inertia.
Studies show that too much choice and information stops us in our tracks and creates inner paralysis. And without the time to invest in mastering what for many is now a full-time job, a large proportion of the UK’s small business owners simply do not bother with social media at all, in spite of its potential. So what is the answer?
“The solution is to understand each platform separately, rather than seeing them as a whole,” says Jamie Richardson, director of London based marketing agency Blaze Communication.
“You have to decide which ones are best suited to the demographic of your target audience and learn to tailor your posts, or content, specifically for that platform. Then don’t worry about the rest. It’s a great chance to tell your company’s story and build a bond with your customers, but don’t get bogged down thinking you have to be everywhere at once.”
So what are the key differences between each platform and how do you decide what will work best for your industry? And what sort of content should you be making to give yourself the best chance of winning your audience’s attention?
LinkedIn is the place for professionals. It’s Facebook with a flowchart. If your business is in B2B or career development then this is where it should be. There are over 300 million professionals on LinkedIn, with an average income of over £50,000. Great networking features such as ‘Groups’ and ‘Pulse’ make it the perfect platform to establish a voice in your industry. Entice like-minded people to engage with you by publishing serious industry articles and uploading presentations via the SlideShare app.
“I follow up and connect with everybody I meet at business related events through LinkedIn so that it functions effectively as my Rolodex,” says Denyse Whillier, owner of business coaching service Best Year Ever.
“This means I’m able to contact everybody I’ve met easily and remind myself about their background, so no piles of business cards! I also keep my own profile up to date and well optimised so that it contains all the key information about my experience and people can find me easily.
“It’s easy to keep in touch via LinkedIn. Just spend a few minutes a day commenting on discussions or adding updates about projects you are working on. There is also a wonderful facility for giving recommendations. I like to give testimonials through LinkedIn to anyone who has done an outstanding job for me. It raises their credibility and hopefully brings them more business too.”
As it’s the world’s biggest social media platform, the chances are you already have a business page attached to your Facebook account, but how well is it being used?
“As a chatty interactive medium it works fantastically well. It is best suited to B2C as people go on there to relax and have fun,” says Jamie Richardson. “Witty micro content, such as short videos and image posts, work best. But it has to be done well, as the sheer volume of content on there makes it hard to stand out.”
This is especially true for new small businesses. Melanie Pretorius of RedDesk, an online virtual assistant business that manages clients’ social media channels, believes that Facebook’s days of benefitting the smaller players are over.
“If you are a new business with a limited budget it is very difficult to get a buzz on there these days,” she says.
“Facebook are limiting the number of people who see your posts, encouraging you to pay to have them boosted. This works very well if you have the budget for it, but the old days of being able to get people genuinely interested by posting lots of engaging stuff do appear to be behind us.”
If you have a new B2C venture that’s visually exciting to consumers, then other newer platforms may prove to be more effective.
“If you make pretty products or are involved in design, be it interiors, landscaping or fashion then you will get much more immediate attention by focusing on some of the newer platforms such as Tumblr, Pintrest or Instagram. Instagram feeds nicely into your other social media channels too.”
Google Plus
“This is a horribly underused platform,” says Pretorius, “but essential for small businesses because it dovetails so well with SEO. Customers can leave reviews, and if you have a Google Local page these will appear alongside your business in Google Maps. That’s something that more and more people are using to find goods and services locally.
If the ultimate goal is to generate more business through Google, then an active Google+ page is a must have. Marketing professionals report that anything posted on Google+ gets indexed much faster by Google’s search engine and leads to better search results.
“We’ve found that by being consistently active on there we have gradually seen higher natural rankings for our clients,” says Jamie Richardson.
“So although you don’t always feel like there is much of an audience to be reached the additional benefits can be huge.”
Of all the platforms Twitter is often the one that’s hardest to master, leaving you feeling like you’ve just walked into a room full of thousands of people all talking at the same time. However, find the right conversation and you begin to understand its appeal. The trick, like at any social event, is to become a good listener.
“It’s great for interacting with businesses and building up a sense of camaraderie in your local area. Once you get the knack you soon find lots of cross-sharing of information and exchanging of leads.” says Pretorius.
“A good place to start is by getting a list of special hashtags. There are certain hours each week dedicated to different industries such as a #handmade hour, #hair hour, #smallbiz hour etc. Just start listening to these conversations then get involved. You’ll soon find yourself making new contacts. It’s a great platform for sharing things like tips, advice, company updates and discount codes.”
“It has to be natural though,” says Jamie Richardson, “people will get a sense if you aren’t enjoying yourself, so if you don’t enjoy it find someone to do it for you who does.”
Content on this page is paid for and produced to a brief agreed with Kia Fleet sponsor of the Guardian Small Business Network Accessing Expertise hub.
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