Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur, working for a start up company or a long term business owner, you will have heard by now about the power of social media to boost visibility online. Social media is now such a huge aspect of everyday life, that it’s rare to find a person who doesn’t use at least one platform on a regular basis. Social media platforms provide us with news, opinions and when done right, can be a great way for businesses to attract leads and acquire ‘user generated content’.

These tips will help give you a good understanding of how to properly utilise social media marketing as a way to grow your business.

Get your branding right

The first thing you need to do when developing a social media presence is to make sure you’re maintaining a consistent level of branding. This means using the same logo, imagery and tone of voice on all channels, which includes only posting or sharing content that fits your image. With platforms like Instagram, simply using the same filter or colour palette for all your images is an easy way to create a brand story, and will help your business stand out at the same time.

Find your audience

Before posting anything, you need to make sure you’re aware of your audience and target market. Details such as the age, gender and location of your target audience can tell you a lot about the social platforms they use, and the type of content they want to see. For example, studies have shown that less people over the age of 30 use Instagram and Twitter compared to facebook and linkedin. Knowing these details about your audience can benefit your business and ensure you’re really utilising your chances of success.

Use engaging content to attract customers

Once you’ve established who you’re appealing to through your social media presence, it’s time to start thinking about content. You’ll find that the type of content you post varies according to each platform, with strong images working well on Instagram and Twitter, and facebook users being responsive to videos and links to blog posts. Paying attention to trends and national holidays is always a good way to stay relevant and generate more engagement through the use of hashtags. User generated content such as competitions or campaigns where customers share their own images are also popular – a successful example of this being the ‘share a coke campaign by Coca Cola back in 2015.

Keep a consistent voice

When someone new searches for your business’s Twitter page, they might be put off by a profile that appears inactive. If you feel like your company just doesn’t have the time to regularly post, work with a digital marketing agency who will develop a strategy for you. Social media profiles that don’t post regular content can lose the attention of their followers, resulting in less leads and engagement. On the flip side, profiles that post too frequently can become annoying, and that’s the last thing you want people to think about your business. On average, the ideal number of posts to optimise engagement is between 1-5 per day for Twitter, with one post a day being best for facebook and between 1-2 posts a day on Instagram.