Tips for Marketing Your Small Business Online and Through Social Media

Just about every small business in today’s digital age knows that marketing a company online and through social media is not just a luxury for the well-heeled but a necessity to stay competitive. The global market for small businesses is enormous, with billions of people using the internet and social platforms daily.  The tricky part is reaching and then meaningfully engaging these potential customers—and sticking out above the rest!

Of course, not every small business entrepreneur is social media-savvy. So, to help you step up your online social media marketing game, Alpine Communications presents our top five practical tips for publicizing your small business online. Through the power of social media—and Alpine Communications’ high-speed fiber internet—the suggestions below can really help you grow your brand and develop your business dream.

1. Create a Visually Appealing and User-Friendly Website

The first step to building your social media and online presence is setting up even the most basic, but still attractive and compelling, website. Before diving into social media and other online marketing platforms and activities, having a professional-looking and user-friendly website is simply a must. Think of your website as your “virtual storefront.” Indeed, for many would-be customers, your website is quite often the first, or even only, impression they’ll ever have of your business!

To bolster confidence in your company and its operation, make sure it is optimized to load quickly, as you don’t want the more impatient amongst us to just “click away” at a sluggish site. Simple navigation is also critical, as visible dropdown menus, easy-to-find contact information, and properly organized content regarding your products and services will engage and keep customers on your page. Also, be sure your website is designed to be “mobile-friendly,” so that customers can easily learn about your business on their smartphones or tablets as well as their laptops.

2. Utilize Multiple Social Media Platforms

Next, it’s time to integrate your online storefront—i.e., your website—into a broader online presence through social media apps and platforms. And yes, we know there’s a lot of those today! It’s crucial to understand that having your business identity across many socials enhances your reputation and greatly helps you reach more potential customers further afield.

Selecting a proper balance of platforms and creating engaging content tailored to each app is key to brand recognition and engagement. For example, Facebook, still widely used by millions, is ideal for event promotion or building community around a brand or interest related to your business. Companies that aim to show off their products visually will find Instagram particularly beneficial, as its sleek and simple design showcases imagery with ease. Likewise, TikTok, a social media platform famous for video sharing, is a great way to reach younger audiences, as TikTok is widely used by people under 30. And don’t forget about LinkedIn, a networking app that keeps you connected to other businesses and one that can provide excellent opportunities for B2B connections and to get the word out about your efforts.

3. Develop a Blog and Other Content

Our next tip requires a bit of creative effort and discipline—developing content. Of course, when you created your website and set up your social media accounts, you will doubtless have written engaging content to fill them with photos, videos, and narratives that highlight your brand and its products and services. But to keep customers coming back—or even just remembering that you’re “around” in the first place—you need a regular “jolt” of content across your online presence, too.

There’s a wide variety of ways you can achieve diverse and engaging content production for your business. For example, blogging is an excellent way to connect with your audience meaningfully or even establish your business as an authority in your corner of the market (at least where you live and operate). Well-crafted blog posts keep your customers updated and informed about your work and can also help you create a connection with an audience and even build trust over time to keep them coming back to you.

Now, don’t panic about coming up with ideas for content! Your blog posts can present “how-to” guides, review products, provide answers to common questions or concerns, or just introduce key members of your team. And you can use your other social media platforms to share the basic themes of your blog post and any associated imagery to reach more people well beyond anyone on your website or email lists. Just be sure to stick to a consistent schedule of content creation and keep your ideas fresh and compelling.

4. Leverage Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Now that your content strategy is up and running, take your online presence to the next level by leveraging the power of SEO. Though a techy-sounding term, SEO is simply the process of optimizing your website to rank higher than other similar websites in search engine results pages. By having better SEO, it’s far easier for customers to find you in the first place and then keep them.

Developing SEO is a skill that takes some practice, but employing a few tricks can greatly boost your SEO performance. For example, in writing content for your website, be sure to use relevant keywords that your target customers are most likely searching for. Put these words in multiple places on your website, such as a “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQ) page, an “About” page, and any specific product or service page that makes sense. And don’t forget to link back to your social media platforms and the content you share there, too, as that can also positively impact your SEO and increase traffic to your website.

5. Interact and Stay Engaged with Your Audience

Lastly, perhaps the most significant tip we can give you is the need for regular and consistent interaction and engagement with your audience. Indeed, in a sense, social media marketing is really all about engagement with many people through digital means. It’s not enough to just post content—you also need regular interaction with your audience to build and maintain customer relationships.

This means that in addition to developing email lists and sending out your blog posts, promoting sales, or highlighting an event, you should also provide opportunities for questions and even feedback. More importantly, you need to respond promptly and substantively. There’s a fine line between overdoing it and being helpfully responsive, of course—and we understand that you have a business to run beyond just marketing it! But by responding to comments, questions, and messages promptly, your customers will feel more genuinely valued. It also encourages potential would-be customers to interact with you and give your business a chance.

And have some fun with it! You can use your website and platforms to take polls and surveys, which also helps you with market research as much as engagement. Try hosting raffles and other contests, too. Encourage your audience to post photos of your products or services or to give testimonials. Taken together, online interaction and engagement is a critical form of community development that is simply essential to growing and sustaining your business in the digital age.

We hope our suggestions and advice will fire up your social media marketing and digital engagement strategy. Staying consistent—and patient—will serve you well, as will keeping your content ideas fresh. Most importantly, always remain authentic and true to your brand and your values. That, plus a diverse and well-rounded use of social media apps and platforms, will help your business shine online.

And for more ways Alpine Communications’ advanced fiber network can enhance your small business, follow our social pages, too!