How to attract customers with social media

Discover how to attract and engage with your customers with social media

Social media has been an important part of the marketing mix for nearly two decades now, but as the pandemic propelled businesses into a digital-first landscape, it has become more important than ever. You only need to look at the increase in media spend across platforms like LinkedIn to see how important it’s become.

But it isn’t all pay to play – you can achieve brilliant results across all platforms by following some simple best practice.

So, whether you’re exploring new platforms or want to take your existing company page to the next level, here are four things to consider.

Start by being visible and available

Posting regularly is an important part of getting your business seen. How often will vary across social platforms, but most organisations aim to post on average 3-5 times a week. This ensures you remain at the forefront of your customer’s minds without bombarding their news feeds.

Each platform has optimum posting times that will differ from business to business. This is the average best time to post globally as a starting point:

Best times to post on Facebook:

• Mondays from 9 a.m. to noon

• Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.

• Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.

• Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.

• Fridays from 9 to 11 a.m.

Best days to post on Facebook:

• Mondays through Thursdays

Worst days to post on Facebook:

• Sundays

Experiment with timings and see what works for you and your audience. It may be that ‘out of office hours’ are actually the busiest, so tools like Sprinklr, HootSuite and Oktopost can help you schedule when your content goes live and FAQs or chat bots on the website can help pick up any queries that come through during those hours.

Create and share informative and relevant content

Once you’ve pinned down when your audience is most keen to hear from you, the next thing to consider is what kind of content to post. Variety is key here. Different kinds of content perform well for different purposes so consider the why. Here’s some examples.

Driving awareness

Share industry news or present your company culture and values in a statement, host webinars on industry specific topics, promote events like sales and even how-to guides on products.

Keeping your customers informed regularly will not only boost engagement rates on social media but it will make your customers feel included and in-the-know about upcoming topics. They will likely remain loyal to your business and brand as they feel they know you.

Content that drives awareness also helps to entice new customers by having your brand out in the open, being talked about.

Driving understanding

Short films and infographics are a great way of breaking down complicated data or explaining a process or product visually and sharing examples of what you’ve helped customers achieve can inspire others to see what you could help them do, through Q and A sessions, case studies, blog posts and announcements.

Driving consideration

Content directing customers to further information and tailored support will act as an effective tool to get relevant information to them. Share customer stories, be authentic and credible, and be sure to be your own advocate for ‘purpose beyond profit’. Share content on how you are or plan to be more socially responsible and ask for your audience’s opinion. This goes a long way with customers and plays a key part in them choosing you as a business.

Start and engage in conversations

We all know that conversations with customers can lead to some great insight. With social media, you have the power to ask them things directly via tools such as polls on Facebook and Instagram stories, or merely by asking people to comment with their opinion on Twitter.

Engaging in conversations on topics that might be relevant to your business is key to boosting your business’ visibility. You can do this by searching a relevant hashtag such as ‘#ecommerce’ and begin joining in with any discussions. You never know who might agree with you or love your point of view.

Stand for something

Build on this by thinking about your own business ethics and beliefs. What do you want your feed to say about you as a company?

In our Future Ready Report, we found that 72% of consumers are becoming more demanding in terms of ethical behaviour or requiring brands to serve a wider purpose than just their core business.

Having a purpose can help you stand out in a crowded marketplace. Take Dove, a Unilever brand competing in a competitive marketplace. In 2004 it began its ‘Real Beauty’ campaign to stand for a cause that its customers could get behind. Since then, other Unilever brands have followed suit and brands that promote a cause are responsible for 75% of Unilever’s overall growth.

But having a purpose doesn’t have to mean launching a global campaign. It can be as simple as supporting a charity and doing a virtual fundraiser. If you want to be seen as more ecologically responsible, how about starting a competition and getting social followers to guess how much plastic you’ve cut back on to win a prize?

The world is waking up and thinking of the social impact brands are having so if you’re going to the extra effort of sourcing sustainable packaging, for example, shout about it. If you’re helping your local communities through various challenges, share your story.

Want more help and support? Speak to our expert V-Hub Business Advisers, who offer tailored guidance and support on a range of topics.