5 Reasons Why Small Business Owners Need a Social Media Strategy (Even If You Think You Don't)

Social network use by brands has exploded since 2020, but many small business owners still wonder if investing in social media marketing is worth it. You may already have a strong offline marketing strategy, and even a large customer base, but chances are you will benefit from social media marketing regardless.

Here are the top 5 reasons why you need a social media marketing strategy.

1. Consumer purchase decisions are driven largely by social media

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54% of social media users research products on social media, and 76% of consumers have bought a product after seeing it in a brand's social media post. By posting on social media, you're enabling your existing customers to act as spokespeople for you.

Say you post about a new product launch and your followers share it to their feeds. You now have significantly more views on your post. Even better, these connections act like your social media "warm leads" - consumers are most likely to trust recommendations from friends and family.

2. You'll learn more about your consumers on social media than anywhere else

Social media is a two-way street. You provide content to your customers, and in return, you learn about them.

Notice a type of content consistently getting attention? Now you know what to keep posting. What's more, your followers can tell you exactly what they like or dislike right in the comments.

This information isn't only useful on social media - it can give you insight on your entire customer base, and guide your overall marketing strategy. All major social media platforms including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter offer free audience analytics tools that can show you demographic info about your viewers, so you can pinpoint your customer persona to a T.

3. Your competitors are already on social media

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Over 70% of SMEs post on social media at least weekly. And if you're not, that's at least 52 times a year that your competitors could get a lead that might've gone to you.

"But no-one in my industry uses social media!" you retort.

If you're in an industry where social media use is rare, you should be even more worried. The few competitors that are using social media to communicate with customers are miles ahead of the rest.

4. Consumers buy from brands they connect with

Brands on social media have become increasingly more humanized - developing personalities, and interacting casually with their online circles. It is much easier to sell when your followers trust you and don't feel like they're reading a sales pitch.

Despite this trend, an incredible 99% of consumers believe brands need to improve their trustworthiness. (Salesforce)

Disheartened? Don't be.

The good news is that social media is ranked the #1 best way to connect with customers. (Sprout Social) Engaging with your audience, having a distinct brand personality, and responding quickly to customer service questions are some of the best ways to build a friendly relationship with your online following. Influencer marketing is also a fantastic tool to humanize your brand and build a connection with your customers.

5. Your business value will increase

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Have you started exit planning? Thinking about it? Then you'd better be thinking about your social media strategy too.

88% of respondents to our poll said their valuation of a business would increase if the business had a strong social media presence and brand.

Social media marketing is not only effective, but easily measurable. Want to show a buyer how valuable your Facebook brand page is? Show them how many people came to your landing page from Facebook. Posted an exclusive promo code to your Instagram page? You can see exactly how many buyers you got because of it.

You don't have to be a marketer to see the value of social media. It's in the numbers.

Our SME social media marketing services

If you're interested in developing or updating your social media marketing strategy but don't know where to start, check out my marketing services here.