Due to world events, small businesses have been hit very hard over the past couple of years. However, now is the time to become more resilient if you want your SME to thrive in this post-pandemic world.
UK SMEs were particularly affected during the pandemic due to the downturn in business. According to the Bank of England figures, the average SME in the UK saw a 30-percentage point drop in turnover growth between April and December 2020.
2022 is the year we hopefully start to put all this distress behind us, and SMEs can look forward to a brighter future. But if the past two years have taught us anything, capitalising on new social media opportunities is the key to helping businesses of all shapes and sizes bounce back.
Boost your Business Blog
Using your business blog properly is essential to get your business website to rank well in search engines. If you have never given your business blog a second thought, now is the time to invest some focus into it and maximise its potential.
It would be best if you were using your business blog as a marketing channel to help increase the visibility of your business online. Your blog can help build your brand awareness, grow followers for your social media channels and support your business growth.
Every successful business should use social media to maximise its results. Your business blog will provide you with the valuable content you need to share across your social media platforms. Sharing useful and relevant blog content is a fantastic way to draw in prospective new customers or clients, or valuable B2B partners.
If you have a blog full of fresh new content, you will get your business ranked higher in search results. Google and the other leading search engines value busy and active sites full of rich content. This can put your business head and shoulders above any competition that don’t bother using their business blog.
Select your Social Media channels carefully
With so many social media channels to choose from these days, it can be hard to know which ones to use for your business. Just because there are many social media platforms available doesn’t mean you need to be a member of them all.
If you really want to master your business’s Social Media marketing you might want to invest in the assistance of a specialist London agency who can help. But if you’d prefer to try and go it alone, then it’s important to focus where you can make the most gains.
Trying to spread yourself too thin across many social media channels can be detrimental to your business. You will struggle to maintain them all, especially if your time is limited or you cannot afford to employ a dedicated social media manager for the job.
Firstly, define who you are trying to reach. Who is your target audience? Sit down and create your ideal customer avatar. Are they male, female or both? What is their average age? What income bracket do they fall into? What social media channels do they tend to hang out on?
Generally speaking, middle-aged customers tend to use Facebook rather than Snapchat. If you are a B2B business, it will be vital to be visible on LinkedIn. This is a social media channel aimed at businesses connecting, rather than for sharing posts with family and friends.
Focus on being present and active on the social media platforms where your target audience is most likely to hang out.
Advertising on Social Media
Business advertising on Facebook and other social media sites is an effective and affordable way to promote your company and get your brand and logo recognised. The beauty of social media advertising is that you can target your adverts to be seen by your key target audience.
When you place an advert in a newspaper or magazine, it will be seen by anyone that buys a copy. However, as newspapers and magazines have a broad readership, your advert is highly likely to be seen by people that will have zero interest in your business or what you offer.
But with social media advertising, you can choose your ideal demographics to make sure your advert gets in front of the people you want to reach. You can dip your toe in the water and test out a few ads to start with.
You can analyse your success and tweak your advert content or demographic, timing etc., until you improve your results and get the most from your investments.
Boost Your Marketing Efforts
Social media is a valuable business tool that you should be taking advantage of in 2022. Even if you have an almost zero advertising budget, you can use a combination of your blog and your free social media pages to boost your following. It will help raise awareness of your business and attract potential new customers, clients or B2B partners.
Pick your social media sites carefully and be present where your target audience spends the most time, and you will make 2022 the year that your SME bounces back with a bang!
