Social Media for Small Business

Running a small business is a major challenge – this is not fresh news. The grass-roots effort needed to be successful is monumental. However, considering that SMEs and micro-business make up most of the businesses in the modern economy, they represent a vital part of our world that we must support. Consider also, that we're also increasingly in the era of “the side gig” - common with Millennials (or “Snake People”, as this delightful extension enables) and budding entrepreneurs – who have the time and resource restrictions of full-time work and bills. What these small businesses have in common is a desire to succeed, without the means. How can they best invest in marketing their brand on multiple channels, especially on social media?

Most people have seen that dormant Twitter profile of their favourite neighbourhood coffee shop, that you follow but never see an update from. What could be possible if they were more active, engaging and sharing with their local community? Platforms such as Facebook have worked hard to make this possible, offering extremely geo-located targeting options on their advertising. But while this might get your ad in front of people, and to some degree the right people, does it build your community? What tools does the small business owner have to power and maintain their social presence, and put what little spare time they have to good use?

Automation

At SoGrow, we believe that the core answer lies within intelligent automation. We provide a service that enables businesses to follow and engage with people that are actively interested in their sector – a marketing agency will follow marketers and other agencies, a coffee shop will follow coffee brands and coffee lovers. Essentially, social automation allows you to put your social media on auto-pilot. However, we also know that automation isn't the answer for everyone, nor is it something that everyone's comfortable with – though we hope that by the end of a free 30 day trial, you'll feel it is.

Going Guerrilla

Guerrilla marketing can be best described as the sulky teenager, who wants to scream for attention. And it's beautiful. If you're prepared to challenge the rules and maybe break a couple, be prepared to use your space to broadcast your message. Own a warehouse? Perhaps look into employing an artist to turn the front of it into a valued local art project. Get the chalk out and scribble on the street, so that all the people looking down at the phone know to turn left to visit your store. Be creative, and be daring.

Sponsorship

Spending some cash to sponsor local ventures, from sports teams to community projects, can be an excellent use of resources for a small business. A Sports Revolution study looked into what people love about being a sports fan, in which 79% considered coming together with others as the key motivation for attending. This sense of community, belonging, and sharing in something bigger than themselves is very powerful. For a small business, buying into this spirit is incredibly valuable and for local groups, need not cost an arm and a leg.

Putting your brand in front of the community helps build the association between your brand and that group – building saliency, and evoking the feeling of togetherness in conjunction with your brand. And ultimately, trust will always sell.

Think we've missed something? Got the next idea to save small business? Let us know in the comments below!