In the modern world, it’s essential that businesses have a presence on social media. Not only is it a great way for people to discover more information about you and what you do, but it also provides you with the opportunity to bring in business and establish stronger relationships with your customer base. Sometimes, getting started on social media can seem like a daunting task, but with the right strategy and a bit of know-how, you can be engaging with your customers, new and old, in no time. We’ve put together a selection of helpful tips below on how you can use social media to acquire new customers!

Selecting the right platform for your business

First and foremost, choosing the right platform for your business. Making sure that you find the right customers on social media is key to a successful social media strategy. Putting out cleverly crafted content via the appropriate channel for your business means that it will be seen by the right eyes and who knows what opportunities that will create!

You’ll have to do some self-reflection and really think about your target audience and what they are likely to engage with. LinkedIn is the preferred platform for B2B products and services, whereas Facebook is more suited to small local businesses. Instagram is the go-to for businesses that need to keep a focus on the visuals, and Twitter is suited to those that are reactive and vocal. Think about what your messaging will be and where people will be looking for that type of content, this should help you decide on where to start your social media journey.

Building your connections with a brand story

Behind every business, there should be a strong and compelling brand story. Social media is a great way to share your story with the rest of the world and is also a brilliant way to build new emotional connections. Customers need a reason to invest their time and potentially money into your business so it’s important to make it clear from the offset what your business is about, your beliefs and what you can offer them. This way, they can quickly form an opinion, and if your brand story is a strong one, become your newest customer. Need a helping hand with your identity? Read our blog Why Your Print Shop Needs a Brand Personality and How to Create One here.

Regularly posting for a healthy feed

When it comes to acquiring new customers, you want to be in their mind, or in this case feed, as much as possible without being overbearing. It’s important to post regularly on social media to get your business noticed, but it’s also about balance. You want your content to be shown regularly and at the top of your customers feed, what you don’t want to do is spam your potential customers to a point of no return. Posting strong and engaging content a few times a week will ensure that you remain noticed and not a nuisance.

Engaging users with appealing content

You may have nailed how often you post, but now it’s time to focus on exactly what you’re posting. If your social media posts have engaging copy and captivating visuals, you’re much more likely to stand out from the crowd. You might want to create a content calendar and come up with ideas for future posts to help you plan how they will look and feel. Don’t forget you can always capitalise on key holidays and celebrations. We’d recommend taking a look at our 2022 Marketing Calendar for more inspiration.

Making the next step with clear call to actions

Before you get ready to post, there is a final step that must not be overlooked when composing your copy. A clear and strong CTA. A CTA, call to action, is a prompt that is used to encourage customers to take a certain action.  Most commonly you’ll see CTA’s take on the form of something similar to; click here, shop now or order today. Social media is a super-easy way to get customers to take action and turn those prospects into purchasers, so make sure you never forget your CTA!

Investing in social media ads

If you find that social media is becoming second nature to you, it may be time to up the ante. Social media ads could be the next step in your strategy, perfect for increasing your reach and designed to bring in new business, social ads will help you to scale your business. Social ads are mostly demographics driven, which means you can target even the most niche of groups. All you have to do is be clear on your objective, select your audience, budget, placement, and format and let the platform do the rest. Don’t worry if it all seems a little daunting, there are a whole host of resources available surrounding social media ads for beginners, or alternatively, you could hire a professional to help you out.

Using analytics to shape your strategy

Last but certainly not least, tracking your social media! Using analytics and insights will help you to unlock so much more information about your audience. Here, you’ll be able to discover what content resonates with customers right up to which CTA’s are the strongest and everything in between. The more data you can get on your customers and campaigns, the more information you will have to guide your social media strategy going forward.

For more help with your social media, discover our helpful tools on our Reseller Hub. Why not take a look at our Social Media Image Size Cheat Sheet for advice on sizing your visuals, or maybe have a read of our blog Why Personalised Communication is the Best Communication for Your Print Business to learn more about crafting the right message for the right channels.