Using Social Media for More Than Advertising

In general, the main goal for your social media accounts should be to drive traffic to your website. That’s where your customers can find concentrated information about your business, from menus and online stores to location and hours. The second goal is equally valuable. You need to use your social channels to engage with your customers. By interacting with them, you can gain their loyalty and affection. Here are some ways you can engage:

Get Interactive with Live Video

No matter what type of small business you are, you can make an impression with live video. If you’re a restaurant, you can do live QA sessions, live cooking videos, or live stream any entertainment you’ve booked. If you’re in retail, you can style outfits and take questions or suggestions; you can talk about the brands you have in stock—you can even do a fashion show to show off what you’ve got! There are tons of possibilities, and the sky’s the limit. 

Challenge Contests

People want to be celebrated. That’s why social media contests are so successful when they’re done right! You can have customers submit photos, pick a winner, and offer a reward. For example, if you’re a restaurant, you could publish a recipe, then have your audience try to recreate it and submit photos of their attempts. Then you can pick a winner and post their photo on your channels and offer dinner for two! It’s a highly interactive and engaging way to get people invested in your business. 

Lean Into Your Loyalty Program

One of the simplest ways to keep your customers coming back is to set up a loyalty program—a reward system that gives your customers reasons to come back. It seems pretty simple but when it comes to actually doing it, a lot of businesses fall short. It takes a thoughtful approach, and business owners don’t always have the time to take that step. That’s why we wrote this article! Once you have a loyalty program set up, you can have your customers interact with your business or tag you in social posts to earn rewards! Let your customers feel like they’re winning. 

You can use your social media to give your business a personality. Get your customers to interact and feel like they’re truly connecting, and they’ll feel a connection to the brand you build. 

Looking for solutions that will help you run your business from point of sale to customer engagement? Get in touch!