With recent events beginning in the spring of 2020, many businesses have been challenged beyond anything they could have ever imagined. It began with complete shutdowns of businesses such as restaurants, bars, hair salons, sporting, entertainment, and travel venues, with stay-at-home orders issued for the public and only essential businesses allowed to remain open. Since then, with a gradual move toward re-opening the country and the economy safely, many businesses have been forced to permanently close, and others are still struggling to remain afloat.
If you’re one of those businesses who is struggling and have had to cut many expenses, you may be tempted to eliminate your marketing budget. Instead, consider the benefits of social media marketing, an affordable solution to getting in front of the masses who are now shopping online and surfing social media platforms now more than ever before.
Social media marketing gets your business in front of your target audience, enhancing brand awareness, informing consumers about your products and services, and leads customers directly to your website or storefront. Whether you invest in traditional social media or paid social advertising on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn, you may be surprised at the affordability and effectiveness of this digital marketing strategy.
Traditional Social Media
Traditional social media marketing simply means your business is posting regularly on a variety of platforms, getting information in front of your followers about your products and services. Your audience is usually already familiar with your company and your brand, and these posts serve to communicate special events or sales to your followers. Your posts can be liked and shared, and they have engaging content and links to your website to purchase a product or service. These social media posts are free to post, and your marketing agency would charge you per post to create the content for your post and post them regularly on your social account.
Paid Social Media
When you invest in a paid social media campaign, your ads are specifically targeted to people who would most likely be interested in what you’re selling. Intensive research is performed in narrowing down your target audience, considering data such as demographics, buying habits, age, gender, and interests. This audience doesn’t necessarily have to be an existing follower or even be aware of your company. Your posts appear in their news feed as they’re scrolling through, and are designed to capture their attention and guide them to your website. Paid social media campaigns usually have an ad budget that is paid directly to the social media platform, and a management fee paid to your marketing company who creates your ads, manages your campaign, and maximizes your ad budget.
Having a strong presence on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter helps search engines recognize your company as a legitimate resource for potential customers. In fact, more than 76% of companies use social media to boost SEO rankings and improve customer loyalty, and that number is growing. If you’re interested in learning more about whether a social media marketing campaign is right for you, reach out to Puget Sound Marketing Solutions. We’re a leading social media marketing company and we can help you tap into this effective marketing tool and generate sales leads. Contact us today!