As we previously wrote in one of our blog posts, social media networks are the places for people to socialize and businesses to bond more with their target audiences, and eventually sell their products and services. By using well thought and planned social media strategy, every business can increase its’ sales via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest etc.
We have prepared for you 6 tips on how to mount up your sales via social media:
#1 FIND OUT WHICH SOCIAL NETWORK YOUR CUSTOMERS USE THE MOST
Not every social network is suited for every business. It is a myth believing that every company should use all social media platforms in order to promote itself better. On the contrary, it is the waste of your precious time and money. We suggest to do a little research before getting actively engaged with a particular platform. Find out where your target audience hang the most. Don’t forget to feel the pulse of each social network. In another words, don’t post the same things on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn. If your page is a brand new, do the research on your competition as well, to get an idea how the things should look like. Remember, don’t be too salesy! You can upload your promotional content once in a while, but try giving to people valuable content. It can be news from your industry or just a handy piece of advice.
#2 MAKE SURE YOUR WEBSITE IS MOBILE FRIENDLY AND FAST
From March 2014, Google has prioritized mobile friendly websites. Most of the population uses smart phones while surfing internet. So, If your website doesn’t show well on the cell phone you will loose potential audience and eventually customers. The same applies for website speed. If your website takes “ages” to load, be sure that your bounce rate will be very high. Since the competition is strong and determined to win, make sure to resolve these issues (if you do have ones) as soon as possible.
#3 USE CALL TO ACTION
People need a reminder! Don’t assume that everyone will mandatory click on the link of your beautiful post with expectation to take them further more to the certain page of your website or blog. Implement a clear call to action in order to guide the users . Facebook has variety of useful call to action buttons that you can use in Ad : Learn More, Shop Now, Contact us, Get Directions etc. Even if it is a simple post on the timeline of your page, you can still tell the audience what would you like them to do, either on the caption of your visual post or the photo itself.
#4 ENCOURAGE CUSTOMERS REVIEWS
From time to time remind your audience to write a review on Google or your Facebook page. Google reviews and their importance for a business are well known. As predicted for 2017, Facebook reviews will receive even more credential. Facebook as a platform continues further expand to the local search, which means that small businesses will benefit from it. When it comes to negative reviews don’t feel intimidated. On the contrary, negative reviews are your chance to turn the whole situation to your own benefit. As the reviews are exposed to public eye , so are your comments. Having on mind that customer is always right, you can always apologize for inconvenience offering the right solution to the problem caused. All of this you can pack in one sentence “braking the ice”, and in the next step guide the customer to the messenger, email or phone conversation. There, further on, you can thoroughly resolve the issue. This is extremely important because everyone can read it and that way you build the professional image of your company. Nevertheless, make sure to answer back on positive reviews as well, because the person that wrote it took his/her personal time and devoted it to your page and should be recognized for it.
#5 USE HIGH QUALITY VISUALS FOR YOUR ADS
Posts that include interesting visuals get 40% more engagement than the ones without it. Therefor, take your time to tell your story through the high quality visual whether it is a photo, a graphic or a video. You don’t need to be a professional designer in order to make great visual content. There are some amazing tools for non designers that can help you create interesting visuals. As 2017 is the year of live video we advise you to put it into practice with a relevant theme for your business. You may schedule to go live once a week or more, to offer valuable content to your audience. It is good to inform the followers about your live video appearance schedule ahead of time, as well as encourage them to engage during the session.
#6 PROMOTE YOUR AD ON THE COVER PAGE
Cover page on Facebook, Twitter, Google + etc is another great place to announce a current promotion, an event or any other message relevant to your business. In order for your current page to look amazing you should use the exact size for each platform : (828px X 315px for FB ), (700px X 400px for LinkedIn), (1500px X 500px for Twitter), (1240px X 700px for Google+) (2560px X 1440px for Youtube Channel Art) . Among different useful tools we would like to suggest Canva . Even if you are not sure how your cover page should look like, you may choose one of many templates that they have on stock. In addition, on Canva you can upload your brand colors and use it each time you create a photo or a graphic. Every time you decide to change cover page, in any of social media platforms , it is strongly recommended to follow the same with the rest of them. That way you maintain the company’s brand and recognition. Don’t forget to use the right size recommended for each page. It is good idea to implement your call to action on cover page as well.
