A great way to generate business and attract customers is by having a solid and workable inbound marketing strategy. Utilizing social media platforms is one of the most effective ways of driving traffic to your brand and store on Zazzle. Here are the top five tips on how to build the right social media presence for your product offerings and brand.
- Choose the Best Social Media Platform for You
Just because there are several social media platforms doesn’t mean you have to be active on each and every one. To effectively market your brand, focus your research on the social media platforms your target customer demographic is using. For example, if your customer base is mostly millennials living in the US between the ages of 18 – 29, they are primarily using Instagram as their main social media platform. Even if you've never used Instagram before, we would recommend opening an account and engaging with your target audience there.
Here are the top six social networks:
- YouTube
- Building Your Network
In order to fully engage with your customers, you first need to build a solid network. Don't be afraid to share your social media accounts with everyone you know. Sharing lets people know that you have a presence on certain platforms. They will then share with their followers and, in turn, organically grow your audience. Start by sharing and liking not only your own Zazzle store page, but also Zazzle’s social media platforms. The more people you can get in front of, the easier it is to promote your brand and engage with potential customers.
- Creating Engaging Content
If your brand is new or unknown, it is easy for your voice to become lost in the crowd. Create and share quality content for your audience and it will help establish your brand and company as a thought leader within your own industry.
Tips on how to engage with your customers:
- Have a complete social media profile with all your business information. Give potential customers a look into what your company does and what makes you different from your competitors. Be sure to keep your branding (voice and tone) consistent with who you are and what you offer. Add a logo and relevant images to further solidify the story you are trying to tell.
- On your Zazzle profile page and on your own individual store pages, add links to your other social media platforms and your website. Likewise, add links to your social media networks on your Zazzle store home page. Linking with and liking Zazzle social media platforms enhances the promotion of your brand to a wider customer base.
- In packaged orders, enclose a card encouraging customers to 'like' or 'follow' your social media accounts and entice them to share photos of their purchases. The more they share, the more your brand will reach new potential customers.
- Creating Shareable Content
When it comes to social media marketing, creating good shareable content is key. Therefore, create content that is more likely to gain you the most visibility. People across social media platforms are more likely to share images over text. Using images and visual content over text alone has been proven to increase customer engagement.
Another important factor in sharing content is knowing when to share. Research the platforms your customers use to determine what day and time and types of post to share. The same applies to certain times of the year like holidays such as Valentine’s Day, etc. By posting relevant posts for these and other trends, more people will engage and share, and ultimately increase your revenue.
- Be Consistent and Measure Success
Consistency in the frequency of your posts is also important. A lack of activity is a sure way to get overlooked. Content moves really fast on sites like Twitter and Instagram; you can get lost in the mix unless you're posting regularly. It is also important to engage and interact with your audience so you are enabling a dialogue and not just a one-way relationship.
Regularly measure your presence on social media to see what works and doesn’t work for your brand. Look at your 'likes', followers, @tags, #hashtags and overall engagement to determine what parts of your strategy are working so that you can make adjustments accordingly.