Today I’d like to welcome Kelsey Chapman to the blog. Kelsey recently joined the Wealthbuilders team as a social media expert. She has built an impressive following for her own business on Instagram and has some things to share that business owners need to know about utilizing social media. Learn more about what she does at kelseychapman.com.
It is no secret that Social Media is an on-trend topic right now. From keeping track of our personal lives to utilizing it for business purposes, it seems like everyone is grabbing this new trend by the horns. After a year of building my own brand and managing multiple social media accounts for clients, I am here to share with you five ways to utilize social media for your business.
- Mastering ONE social media platform
When you begin, it is far more important to go narrow and deep versus shallow and wide. If you try to jump on board Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Linked In, and Periscope you are going to quickly get overwhelmed and eventually burn out. A great place to begin is selecting a single platform and mastering it. In deciding which platform, be in tune with your desired audience. For Millennials, Instagram is the most used platform. For Generation Xers, Facebook is far more impactful. Be aware of who you want to reach and what platforms your target audience is using most.
- Free advertising
Did you know your online presence is a form of free advertising? A huge trend for businesses utilizing social media is creating shareable content. This can be in the form of inspirational word images, teaching materials, free printables, etc. This provides an item of value to your followers but often has the trademark of your name or website attached to it. When someone shares one of these “freemiums,” their database of friends, many of whom you may have never reached before, is now exposed to your business.
- Profitability vs. Popularity
It is common to get caught up in how many followers you have on social media. While it is easy to fall into the trap of measuring yourself against your friends or competitors, it is not so easy to see how valuable those followers actually are. Be sure you are targeting the right audience for your brand when growing your online presence. While a ton of likes may look great to the naked eye, if those followers don’t convert to actual customers, your investment of time with social media is a fruitless endeavor.
- Scheduled Postings
One thing to be wary of is being consumed by social media. It can quickly take over your personal life and be a nuisance to your loved ones when you are constantly stopping to create a post. My biggest recommendation is to “batch” your posts by creating them all at once and sitting down to schedule them at least once a week. You can do this with any platform using a variety of apps or websites. A few I would recommend are CoSchedule, Hootsuite, and Schedugram. These apps typically cost a small fee, but allow you to schedule out your posts in advance so that you can truly enjoy your spare time without stopping to think, “Time to post!”
- Keep learning!
There are always free seminars covering any given platform. Find experts who are teaching courses covering the social media channel you are attempting to utilize. Often these experts host free seminars for their audiences! This can equip you to take your social media presence to the next level without spending a dime. Of course I highly recommend purchasing an all-encompassing course on the desired topic, but if you are attempting to come out of this scotch-free, Google and free courses will be kind to you.
Thanks for allowing me to share my favorite social media tips with you. In the past year I began my own blog that grew to 40,000 followers, launched a magazine, and managed multiple social media accounts for clients. I can honestly say these tips have proven tried and true for me!
Join me every Monday for tips on entrepreneurship and leadership.
