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Making Social Media Work For You



Many major corporations in the United States have created positions and even teams of people within the last ten years or so to handle marketing their business via social media. Jobs like "Social Media Coordinator" and "Digital Marketing Manager" have become increasingly common since the introduction of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

While smaller businesses may not have the budget to hire a team of people or even one full time person to focus all of their time and energy on promotion via social media, it is important to understand how these platforms can help with consumer engagement and loyalty, increased awareness and sales, and even better customer service.

According to Social Media Today, the average person spends almost two hours on social media per day! Given the amount of time we spend driving, working, eating, sleeping and participating in other various activities, businesses cannot afford to be absent in these spaces. The following tips will help you to make the most of your online presence by effectively and efficiently reaching your consumers.

1. Know your audience

As with any good marketing strategy, it's important to start by identifying your consumer. Who are they? What is their age range? What about their interests? Knowing their demographic information will help you to target the spaces online where they will be spending the majority of their time. Once you are able to narrow that down, it will help to pinpoint the platforms and also the spaces within those platforms where you can connect with your potential customer.

2. Know the tools

Each social media platform has tools in place that allow you to market your business more effectively. Some of these tools require a financial commitment and some are free. For example, while you are able to find paid advertisements on Twitter, utilizing hashtags properly and connecting your business to trending topics is a free way to connect and promote.

3. Know your goals

Once you are able to identify who you plan to reach and how you plan to reach them, it is essential to set up some measurable goals that will allow you to determine whether or not your strategies are working for you or wasting your time. If your main goal is connection and awareness, be sure to track how many followers or friends you have and also keep track of how often they are interacting with your page. Simple reporting will help you tremendously as you determine where to focus your efforts.

Social media can be a real added bonus to your bottom line with just a little time and energy if you are willing to learn how to make it work for you!

- Big Mouth Social