Using social media to drive engagement and traffic to your website is a great way to build your brand. With so many people engaging with social media, you’ll be able to potentially increase your customer base. Whether you own a small business or you’re looking to enhance your brand, there are many free and easy solutions to help you grow your market share and revenue. We’ve compiled a list of helpful tips to make the most of your social media presence.

Leverage the audiences of other brands and influencers

Demonstrating to customers that you have connections and the support of other thought leading brands within your industry is helpful to give your brand more credibility and brand recognition. In fact, harnessing the established audience of another brand and asking them to help promote your products and services can be a quick win to expand your reach quickly and efficiently.

When contacting relevant influencers or brands, it’s important to look for someone that will have a shared audience, a good reputation, and shares your brand values. You should explain to them why your product will help them grow and reflect well on their own brand and if relevant, offer to promote their products on your own platform in a mutually beneficial cross-promotion. Building these ties will further cement your reputation, strengthen your relationship with influencers and open you up to bigger and better contacts within your given industry.

Post consistently to maintain a conversation with your audience

A fantastic way to get your brand out there is by consistently posting valuable content on your social media platforms. However, each platform and industry is different – so do some research on the best practice for frequency in your industry. Posting consistently on each channel gives your content higher visibility and a better chance to be shared, tagged and responded to, increasing engagement amongst users that don’t already follow you. Don’t worry if you occasionally reuse content – this gives you an opportunity for your audience to be reminded of a product or idea they may have forgotten, or see a post for the first time if the original post didn’t reach them.

Interact with customers through community management

Interacting with your audience can create a happier customer that feels they are being addressed personally and cared for, increasing the probability that they will continue using your service or products. It’s important that you find the right approach to responding to your customers on social media, whether it’s by responding to comments directly or hosting regular Q&A sessions on your platforms. It’s important to always be open and honest with your customers – no one likes being misled.

Plus, it’s a good idea to host promotions and competitions that involve customer engagement where possible, increasing the reach of your brand across social media with the offer of discounted products or exciting prizes that don’t leave you out-of-pocket. Remember, brand exposure can make up for expenditure.

Create engaging content that brings value to your audience

The idiom, ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’ can do your brand wonders on social media. No one likes to read paragraph after paragraph of words to get to the core proposition of a post. Consider using visual or other forms of engaging content to draw in your audience. This allows the expression of your message or product in a succinct and clear manner, that can also be fun and engaging – leaving the customer wanting more. It’s a good idea to use a variety of content types (such as video, Instagram Stories polls, downloadable content offers), so that you can engage with different segments of the market.

Link to your different platforms

It’s a good idea to prominently display the links to all your social media profiles on each platform. This way, you’ll be able to encourage your audience to follow you on many of your existing platforms, so that they are reachable across different channels. For instance, a customer may be more responsive on one platform over another but are unaware that you have a presence on their preferred platform. Highlight these links for your customers and your pages will grow in a more consistent manner.