Social media is one of the most talked-about topics in the online space today. There are 3.78 billion social media users worldwide in 2021. A 5% increase from a year ago. It is also 920 million more than the number of social users in 2017, which represents a whopping 32.2 percent jump in just five years.
57.6% of the world’s population uses social media. The average daily usage is 2 hours and 27 minutes. More than half of the world now uses social media. 4.55 billion people around the world now use social media, 400 million new users have come online within the last 12 months. 5.29 billion unique mobile users mean more than two-thirds of the world have access to a mobile phone. Notably, 44% of 8-11-year-olds use social media apps/sites, swiftly increasing to 87% of 12-15-year-olds.
More than 4 in 5 media internet users are using social media to access the news. Plus, 25.3% of 16-64-year-olds have used the internet to check their health symptoms in the last week. 2021 analysis of regional use of social media shows the wide variation inactive social media penetration reaching 66% in Eastern Asia, 74% in North America, 72% in Southern America, and 79% in both Northern and Western Europe falling to 31% in Southern Asia, 16% in Western Africa and 8% in Middle Africa.
Therefore, with the above statistics, having a strong social media presence as a business owner is very essential for sales and more productivity. Social media presence is the visibility a brand has on social media platforms and the connection it builds with its community. The stronger your presence, the more trust you can build with your audience before developing a direct relationship beyond this marketing channel.
To increase productivity for small business owners, you need to build a strong social media presence. How do you achieve this? Here are 5 ways small business owners can improve their social media presence:
1. Know your audience: The first thing is to start by identifying who your target audience is. You must conduct research on your product and target audience in other not to market to the wrong people. Identify the most common demographics, and create customer personas that you can draw from.
2. Establish your goals: In other to build your desired online presence, you need to think about what you want to achieve with your social media strategy. Once you’ve decided on your wider goals, break them up into more manageable milestones. Use specific numbers and timelines where possible, like “reach 5,000 Instagram followers in the next three months” or “increase Facebook engagement by 10% each month”.
3. Create a social media calendar: map and write put what you will share and post for the month in other to build consistency that will result in a stable online presence. Using a social media calendar can help you plan for holidays and special events, as well as make sure your whole team is on the same page. It also provides an overview of what’s going to happen when and gives your strategic focus.
4. Engage with your audience: 21% of shoppers follow a brand on social media that communicate with them. They will want to build a good relationship with the brand they are buying from. Especially now when the human relationship is more important than ever. Customers who connect well with a brand later become a loyalist and also the brand’s ambassadors.
5. Focus Your Efforts On Select Networks: Nowadays, there are so many social networks to choose from. As a small business owner, you can’t manage to be active on them all. You have to work based on your business goals and also your audience. Figure out which networks make the most sense for you to dedicate your time and efforts to, and then stick with those. Do not overwork yourself on all platforms that won’t bring productivity.
In conclusion, with the right strategy in using your social media platforms, your business will experience continuous growth, sales, and productivity.
