A Beginner’s Guide to Social Media

Social media can help you build brand awareness, announce new products, drive traffic to your website and build your community. Best of all, you get to have a little fun in the process! Your socials aren’t the place to be super slick and corporate – people want more than just polished up ad copy, they want to feel like they’re getting to know your business. So go on, give ‘em a peek behind the curtain…

1. Pick your poison 
There are loads of social media platforms out there, but you don’t need to be on every single one of them. We recommend choosing just 1 or 2 and being as consistent as possible with your posting. Do a bit of research to find where your target audience hangs out – different age groups tend to favour different platforms, so knowing your demographic will help you pick the right platform for you. Facebook and Instagram are still the big kahunas of the social world, so it might pay to start there, they’ll deliver the most bang for your buck. 

2. Create a schedule 
You could spend all day engaging with social media if you wanted to, but when would all the work get done? Be realistic about how much time you’re willing to devote. It’s a great idea to get a content calendar going so you can plan ahead and feel much more organised about it all. (It may sound like an extra step that you can miss, but trust us, it will pay dividends later.)

3. Get the basics right 
When creating your account, make sure your bio tells the audience who you are and what you do (as succinctly as possible of course!). What would a person who's never heard of you need to know? And where are you directing them for further information? Check that your contact details are correct, and your links are pointing to the right places. And remember to link your new social accounts on email signatures, newsletters and your website too. 

4. Save your hashtags
Hashtags are how people search for things on social media, and it’s worth spending a bit of time to get a hashtag list together. You know, the standard ones that will relate to everything you post (you can add post-specific ones later). Your general hashtag list might include your company name, your industry, your products or your location. Anything that helps you appear in those feeds. For example, a coffee shop in Hastings Street, Noosa might want to use #noosacoffee #coffeenoosa #bestcoffeenoosa #hastingsstreet, that way they’re covering all the bases. 

5. Start posting
Now comes the fun part! Your content can be whatever you want it to be, that’s the beauty of social media. Share your favourite products or promotions, take a few snaps of your process, share industry articles, how-tos or a fantastic testimonial you’ve received from a customer. And remember, consistency is key! Social media algorithms are more likely to recommend you to others if you post consistently. (This is where having a content schedule comes in handy).

6. Grow your following 
Social media is the new networking and your followers are your community. Spend some time seeking out accounts to follow – customers and industry peers are a great place to start. You might even have the opportunity to share articles and information with others, and have them share yours! The more you like, follow and engage with others, the more likely they’ll return the favour. This is a world ruled by algorithms, and those algorithms favour engagement. Consider asking questions or using polls to conduct research or spark some healthy debate! 

7. Mix it up
You can, and should, promote your products and services – it’s one of the main reasons you joined social media in the first place, right? But we recommend exercising a little caution here, as being bombarded with promotional posts often leads to people unfollowing. Mix your promos in with other stuff such as staff profiles, fun facts and behind the scenes sneak peeks. Give your audience something they won’t get from your website, it’ll help them feel all warm and fuzzy! 

8. Run social media specials
Give back to your social following by offering specials that aren’t shared anywhere else (and when you build a reputation for secret sales, don’t be surprised if your following goes wild). People love to feel like they're getting a special deal not seen anywhere else, and they'll be refreshing your page constantly to see what savings they can get their hands on! 

Approximately 80% of Australians use social media, that’s about 20.5 million people! If you’re not taking advantage of those numbers, it’s time to jump onboard. We look forward to seeing you on the socials soon. Better yet, give us a follow! We promise to #returnthefavour.