Have you ever found a local business on Facebook, only to see that the content they post is one big flyer? That flyer has all their services mixed up in one. I personally know business owners who do this and I think they miss the mark when it comes to social media, and I’m going to share why.
Outside of a stamp of approval when I follow businesses on social media, I’m looking for more information about what they do and to connect with the brand, learning more about their story. This approach to social media is causing many businesses to lose money because not everyone is in the market to buy. Publishing content other than a sales pitch is a good strategy. So the question you might ask is, what do you post?
Answer questions that your customers have
The first type of content you can share is frequently asked questions. These are easy to do, just use your phone and record videos of yourself answering the questions that customers have. These types of content is a great way to build trust with your audience. To get started, make a list of all the questions your business get on a regular basis and start creating videos with the answers, then schedule them over the course of the week.
Teach people how to do what you do
Another way to use social media is to build trust by teaching. John Jantsch in his book “Duct tape selling” says content that demonstrates your expertise, attract leads and builds your reputation is a renewable asset. Once you build it, it can serve you for years, and continue to increase in worth. This shows you just how important it is to teach what you know.
If you’re in fashion teach people about how to dress for different occasions. A photographer can show how to take pictures with a DSLR. A chef can teach recipes so that others can copy what they are doing, and by doing this, builds trust as well as finding new content ideas.
When you educate your customers they become more informed about the choices they make, and working with them becomes way easier. For example, I worked with some gospel recording artist on a few tracks, and we would talk all the time about how the music business works, how to get the music out there and so on. These were paying customers, and they had questions about the next step. I had solutions, and I shared it with them. This was on a one to one level. Social media can amplify stuff like that.
A channel to share your story
One of the things I hear gospel recording artiste in Jamaica complain about is lack of support from the media. Business owners have similar problems with getting media coverage. Here’s the thing about getting a write up in the paper, and an interview on the radio or television doesn’t always lead to people buying your products. Sometimes the media doesn’t tell your story accurately. But you don’t have to wait or seek permission to do that. Share your story your way through your social media channels.
How can you do that? Start by sharing why you started your business. Share what problem you are looking to solve. What are some of the challenges you’ve faced, and how you overcame them? If you make food products, talk about health challenges that you are looking to solve. A story about a person who had something that your product can assist with. These are the things you can share. If you support a cause, and the business is just a vehicle to share that. Occasionally, you can drop a sales pitch.
Share behind the scenes footage
The last thing is sharing your work, and what you do. Bring people behind the scenes. Show them the process of you making “your thing”. Do you have an interesting conversation with a customer t? share the story. Sharing the process of how you do business gives persons an inside look at exactly how you can help them. Don’t worry about people copying your style because the people who care will still want to do business with you.
Is there a technique that you’re using, share that. Is there a system that use to solve problems, share that. You get the idea by now.
These are four areas that can help you maximise your social media channels, and drive positive results for your business.