7 proven methods of finding customers using social media
So, you’re ready to delve into the dark art of social media - but you might be wondering where to start, or how you’re even going to find your customers on social media! We get it, it can seem like a scary thing; but you need to be using social media marketing for your business.
Why? The online world has been growing for years, with more and more brands turning to social media and digital marketing to attract their customers. If you’re not there you’re missing out on customers - it’s that simple. It’s only been escalated by the recent events of COVID-19 - with businesses unable to open their physical locations, a strong online presence has been more necessary than ever.
So with all that in mind, where do you start? Here are seven tried and tested methods that we use every day, to help our clients find customers using social media.
1. Have a strategy
It all starts with a solid strategy - don’t just jump in without a plan or purpose. Start simple and think about what your business goals are and how you can use digital marketing to help achieve them. Are you looking to grow brand awareness? Or looking to generate more digital sales for your e-commerce business? Depending on what you’re looking for, you can come up with some objectives for your social media channels - like growing your impressions and reach on your social posts to get seen by more potential customers, or driving more of the right people to your website using paid advertising.
2. Be where your customers are
With so many platforms out there, and so many new ones popping up all the time (hello, TikTok), it's easy to get caught up in thinking your brand needs to be everywhere. Choosing the right social channels shouldn't be about jumping on the latest bandwagon - it's about where your customers are online. Different channels have different purposes too - for example, Instagram is all about the visuals and storytelling, LinkedIn is all about business and YouTube is like a personalised TV station. The key to nailing your social channels is to pick a couple of channels and do them really, really well.
3. Be consistent an persistent
Social media rarely sees overnight success - you need to have a strategy and be persistent and consistent to get you the results you want. By creating a solid strategy and investing the time in creating relevant content for your customers, you’ll be well on your way to seeing success in your socials. Your strategy should help you determine things like what to post, when and where - making it easy to manage all your channels and deliver relevant content to your audience.
4. Be authentic
Be authentic and genuine everywhere your brand is online - and that includes social media. People care about the person behind the brand as much as the brand itself, so you want to make sure you’re personable and genuine in what you say. Your tone of voice should feel and sound like ‘you’. When you’re writing, a great tip can be to read it out loud to yourself when you’re done - is that how you would say it when you’re talking to a friend? Try and bring that tone to everything you write, from content to emails to sharing on social media.
5. Invest in paid advertising
Social media platforms are ‘pay-to-play’ these days, so you need to invest in paid advertising to make sure that all your hard work is getting seen by the right audience. Making great content and then not supporting that with any amplification budget is like a “one-handed clap.” Social media advertising doesn’t need to be complex and confusing - even very simple ads that are set up well will deliver you great results. If you need some help with where to begin your digital advertising, we’ve got packages specifically designed to help out.
6. Engage, engage, engage!
It's a key strategy to help you grow engagement and followers on your channels, and it is so easy to do - talk to your customers. By replying to DMs, comments, answering questions, and responding to reviews, you'll make your followers feel heard, and encourage them to continue to engage with you. It doesn't need to be time-consuming - just 10 minutes every day will help you boost your engagement and help your customers feel heard. We’ve all seen those posts (and even ads) by brands where there are lots of comments and zero response from the brand… It looks lazy, uncaring, and it’s a real turn-off for potential new customers. It’s really worth the effort!
7. Nurture your customers
Once your social media strategy starts to deliver results - like driving visitors to your website and generating leads - capture people and nurture them. Don't let people slip through the cracks - when it comes to marketing it’s much harder to find new customers all the time than to engage with your existing customers. Make sure you send them a welcome email or reply to their enquiry straight away to start the relationship on a positive note. It’ll make sure that they feel important to you, and will also make them more likely to convert.
So now you’ve got all the tricks of the trade, it’s time to use them! Get started working through these tips and you’ll be well on your way to social media success. If you need some expert advice, that’s where we come in - we’re experts in all things digital marketing, social media and content creation. If you’d like to have a frank and open chat with one of our team to see how we could help you achieve your digital marketing goals, drop us a line - team@attentionagency.co.nz.