When it comes to running your startup, you need more than just the skill to sell your product or service. You need a strategy. While many resources will offer guidance, there is no “one-size-fits-all” guide.
Running your business is often a process of trial and error, and the same goes for social media marketing. Social media is one of the cheapest means of growing your business, as building up an organic following of potential clients will cost you nothing but time and effort.
Below are six hacks you can implement right away to grow your business on social media with minimum effort:
- Use IFTTT (If This, Then That)
IFTTT is one of the most powerful and most underrated tools in the digital marketing scene right now. IFTTT is like the pit-stop of automation for online marketers. It gives you the power to shorten lengthy processes, streamlining those which you would otherwise have skipped.
One great example of IFTTT is a small social media automation: As soon as you change the photo of your Facebook page, the profile photo on Twitter automatically changes, ensuring that your brand identity is always in sync across platforms. These little things can save a lot of time.
Related: Make the Most of Your Content Through Social Media Channels
- Schedule multiple tweets from the same article
A lot of time and research goes into writing an article; parts of which will likely appeal to a different readers.
Take for example, this article you’re reading: Twitter hacks will likely only attract those who are currently using or intending to use Twitter for marketing. Therefore, it is safe to say that most articles can be presented in more than one way when sharing and promoting them on platforms like Twitter.
Using this article as an example; the first tweet could be very generic about the topic of the article, and subsequent tweets could be for each of the six tips being shared. You can also automate the complete process with an app like Hootsuite or TweetDeck.
It’s important not to underestimate the benefits of recycling evergreen content and getting the most out of the resources you already have.
- Be a pro at social media design (with minimal effort)
Being creative is an essential part of the online marketing strategy, and the very first step is to ensure that all of your social media designs are interesting, engaging and clean.
If you have a graphic designer on your team, consider yourself one of the lucky ones. For many entrepreneurs, a graphic designer is a cost they can’t afford. If this is the case, try a tool like Canva for creating social media graphics. It’s quick and easy and requires minimum effort with almost no learning curve. It allows you to create posts within minutes for different platforms while maintaining consistency across designs.
- A meme for every occasion
Memes are found everywhere these days, including business accounts. It’s likely you’ve come across many brands making use of these content pieces across their social media pages, as they tend to humanize a brand while engaging the audience.
The best part about memes is that you don’t need super graphic design skills. All you need is a sense of humour, sarcastic tone or a little nostalgia.
- Don’t limit yourself to just your content
Research has shown that the brands with maximum engagement on social media post around one to five times a month.
Now what options do you have?
How about posting an article from a large publication or a blog post from a popular influencer in your niche? This way, you not only establish a good connection with bloggers and webmasters of other (non-competing) websites, but also come off as a brand that is thoughtful and cares for its readers by providing them with relevant content related to subject matters they care about.
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- Focus on the emotions
Put in a little thought, improvise and be creative with your social media posts, and don’t be afraid to add emotion when sharing your product or service.
Think of where your potential customers are at in their life stage, what their characteristics are, when and how they would need your product or service. All of this will allow you to form an emotional connection with your potential customers.
An example of this is a startup brand for maternity clothes connecting their content to the stages of a baby growing up from the viewpoint of a parent.
To be successful in growing your business through social media marketing, strategizing is the first step. Persistence in executing that strategy is the difference between your social media being an essential tool in your startup’s growth, or just another item to check off your to-do list.
