Social Media Do's and Don'ts for Beginners for Beginners
For many small businesses, social media can feel like a wild goose chase.
They know it should work, they’ve seen their friends and rivals make it work, but they can’t make social media an asset for their business.
Social media is like any other tool, you must use it the right way if you want it to work properly.
There’s no secret to it. You need to set aside time every day to make social media work for you.
Make social media a part of your daily duties and you will soon find it is a potent tool for advertising your business.
This post will go over a few tactics that make social media work, and some ideas you should avoid.
To Post or Not to Post
Social media can be revolutionary for beginners, especially if they are used to paying for advertising.
But before you jump into social media headfirst, there are a few ideas and strategies you must be aware of.
Beginners may be tempted to go big, but that can hinder them in the long run.
Your first posts should be simple: an image and some text.
Remember, you should have two goals when people visit your page. First is to advertise your business or product. When your readers log out, they must know what your store sells or does. Second, you must inform or entertain your readers. If you cannot hold their interest, then they will not buy your product.
Market your social media to three tiers of customers.
- Customers who already buy from you.
- Customers who are not ready to buy but will know your name when they are ready.
- Everybody else.
Do make simple posts with images and text.
Don’t try to make any single post do too much. Have one goal in mind and accomplish it with one post.
Scheduling is one of the most difficult parts of producing social media posts.
What time of day should I post? How often? What topics should I broach?
The truth is that there is no one correct answer. The best strategy is to make a strictly scheduled plan for one month and stick to it, then revise for the next month.
Try making a plan for one social media post a week over the next month. That should leave you with four or five posts for the month.
Plan out what each post will say and post one every Monday at noon.
Once you have a month under your belt, you can determine whether one post a week is too much for you or not.
Do make a consistent schedule and stick to it.
Don’t post without a plan. The worst thing you can do is post five times in one day, then not again for a month. Consistency is key.
The recipe for your first post is simple. Text + image = social media post.
However, once you get your feet under you and start making consistent posts, you can branch out into other social media tools.
For example, hashtags, scheduled posts, and tracking URLs can all be used to make better social media posts.
Start with the essentials, but don’t feel you have to be rigid or lifeless. Try some modest experiments and let your voice shine through.
Do start with the basics and begin researching more advanced tools.
Don’t try to get too advanced too quickly. You will only wind up getting overwhelmed.
Finally, after a few weeks of consistent posting, you will start to get followers and even comments on your post.
Your first comment can be thrilling. Often comments will ask you questions or voice support for your business.
Respond to these comments with relevant information and be sure to use a friendly, professional tone.
Do interact with your followers.
Don’t spam posts or comments, complain, fire back against negative posts, or post anything negative about your business or your competitors.
Making the Perfect Post
Figuring out how to make social media work for your business is never easy.
It can take weeks or months until you see even a glimmer of success.
Social media can be thought of as more a marathon than a sprint.
It takes considerable planning and knowledge to make a proper social media plan. You must focus on quality over quantity and always put the customer first.
If you are struggling to make social media work for you, then it may be time to reach out for help.
Legend Web Works is here for you.
Our expert social media and marketing team has the knowledge and experience to make social media work for your business.
When you are ready to take your social media experience to the next level, reach out to Legend Web Works.
(513) 492-9008
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