Social media is more than just a trend for the young and technology-savvy. More and more brands are using social media for business, usually integrating it in their marketing efforts.  For those who are skeptical, you’d probably think, why use Social Media when print, broadcast and other tried and tested forms of advertising are already available? Why use Facebook for business and what are the advantages of a having a Facebook business page? Perhaps, social media isn’t for everyone personally but if you would look at it businesswise, it can potentially give you huge amounts of savings if you have a solid social media strategy.

The cost of engaging in social media is minimal compared to other forms of advertising.  A huge chunk of this investment goes to time spent and human resources, so it’s really relatively low compared to creating television, radio or newspaper advertisements. Moreover, the cost for all kinds of traditional advertising is based on its demographic reach. But with social media, it’s limitless as it is available 24/7 on the internet and its viral sharing options offers worldwide reach.  If you can engage your target audience, it won’t be too hard to convert these leads into actual clients.

Another advantage of using social media for business is that it’s all about “word of mouth”.  We all know that in business, referrals from your customers mean your advertising efforts are effective.  You can use social media to strengthen brand loyalty by creating contents that resonate to your target audience, and in return they can share it to others at no cost to you.  A simple click of the “Like” button of your FB page made brand advocacy simpler and more personal.

It’s also a great venue for your business to provide excellent customer service and get real time feedback from your customers. You can better manage and develop your brand as you get actual comments from your customers. If there is something exciting happening with your brand or you just have to make an emergency announcement, you can easily share it with your fans.

Social media is also a powerful research tool. You can easily find out what your competitors are doing and what consumers are saying about them. You can find out the key players in your industry and learn from them.  It allows you to monitor trends and use them in your social media marketing strategy.

With all the advantages of social media for business, would it actually work for all types of businesses? If used correctly it can actually work for all sizes of businesses but it’s important to note that “social media is NOT a one size fits all”. The strategies vary based on the size of your company and your target audience, which is why the 2 important questions to consider are: how much is your budget and who are your customers?

In terms of your budget, social media is relatively cost-effective but then again, you would have to consider what are your goals and if you have the time, money and human resource to do it. Brands who have established themselves prior to engaging in social media would have more advantage than SMBs as they have the money to spend and could easily pull in external help if needed. SMBs on the other hand have limited manpower hence do not have enough time to allocate for social media. More often than not they struggle with it and so the need to outsource it may come into play.

When using social media for business you must consider where your target audience are in the social network sphere.  If your target audience is between 18-35 years old then Facebook and Twitter would be a good place to start. If you are leaning in attracting the executives/professionals then more focus on LinkedIn would be a logical idea. Basically, you don’t have to be in all social networking sites to make social media work for you.

Eager to learn more about the benefits of using social media for business? Contact us!