The Importance of Social Media Marketing

Social media can be a pain, am I right? Thinking in terms of a small business marketing plan, social media can seem like one more step, one more thing to remember, one more thing to update. I think a lot of people feel this way, so you are not alone; however, in today’s society, social media is CRUCIAL to carrying out a well-rounded marketing strategy.

A lot of people have a love/ hate relationship with social media. It’s understandable. Was it this relevant a century ago, not really. But we can’t think about the past, because you want your small business to stay important and pertinent, which is where social media plays a huge role. So, instead of thinking of it as maybe an annoyance, start training your mind to think of social media as your ally. Stay with me here. Social media, whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. allows you the capability to instantly update things about your business. Let’s use a restaurant as our example of a small business. Your restaurant has a fantastic website that you spent money and time creating. It’s perfection. What happens though when you want to notify customers of a new daily special you’re having? Or what happens if you have brand new summer hours, where now you decide to close for lunch on a Monday? Lastly, what if you are having a big Holiday event that you want to notify your customers of in hopes that they attend? Get where I’m going with this? Chances are you might not have the capability nor the time to go in and update your entire website just to notify people of today’s dinner special. However, what is a great way to alert your consumer of these small announcements- social media! Maybe you put up on your restaurant’s Facebook page that today you are having a Fish Fry and then you can also post a picture! This helps not only make people aware, it also helps entice them and keep your restaurant top of mind!

Which leads to the next big advantage of social media. If you stay consistent, and update your business’s pages regularly, then you stay top of mind to the consumer. You are like the constant knock on their door reminding them you’re there. And perhaps the best part of social media is that these mediums are free! It may cost your business money to have someone operate and run them for you, however, it’s totally free of charge for you to create an account. So, the real question becomes why not use social media in your marketing plan? There’s no good answer right? That’s why it’s crucial to include it in your marketing efforts!