WHY AREN’T YOU POSTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA?

There was once a client of ours who believed she didn’t need social media. We designed her website and tried to convince her that a presence on at least Facebook would complement the website and help grow her business. We even set up her Facebook page — as we’ll do for clients — and made a couple of posts. Then she hit the brakes and said, “STOP. No more Facebook.” 

Whether she was tired of the logistics of using Facebook or tired of the political affiliation with social media platforms in general, social media is an integral way to communicate with prospective clients.

You’re missing the boat if your business is not utilizing social media.

The perfect platform varies from client to client. Maybe you need to be on Instagram but not Facebook. Maybe you need to be on LinkedIn but you don’t have enough visual appeal for Instagram. But you need to be somewhere.

Generally speaking, here is how often your business should post on social media: Facebook: 1 time per day or 5 times per week. Twitter: 3-5 times per day. LinkedIn: 1 time per day.

Organic posting for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn is free, and paid advertising on those channels doesn’t need to break the bank. Place your Facebook or Instagram feeds on your website homepage, in the footer area, and place a YouTube video message on your homepage (Google owns YouTube!). We suggest this for all of our clients. 

We’ve worked with small businesses who launch a Facebook page with the best intentions, only to hardly ever post. You need to post. Regularly. Your competitors are on social media. They’re posting. Share the business posts on your personal timeline and increase your reach or hire ARH Media Solutions to manage your business page.

The best practice would be to have a presence on multiple platforms, if possible. According to the Pew Research Institute, 90 percent of Americans on Facebook also have active accounts on LinkedIn. Among those on Twitter, 73 percent are on Instagram and 95 percent watch YouTube videos. Besides keeping in regular touch with customers about your special offers and letting prospective clients know about your services and value, here are our top 5 reasons for posting on social media:

• • • Nearly everyone — including your customers — is on social media. Three-quarters of Americans — 73% — use more than one of eight social media platforms, according to a 2018 survey by the Pew Research Institute. 68% report they are Facebook users, with three-quarters of those daily users. 
    • Google puts lots of stock in social media. Although it’s debatable whether it’s actually a ranking factor in search results, published research indicates that “social popularity helps rankings on Google,” says Search Engine Optimization (SEO) guru Neil Patel. A page 1 listing for your business is next to impossible without an active social media presence. Bing has always considered social media as a ranking factor. 
    • Social media will drive website traffic and, in turn, sales. One ARH Media client used social media to leverage her business during the first several months of the pandemic. She’s extremely active on Facebook and Instagram. She attracted 19,468 total website visits from June 2 to Sept. 2 and business is booming. Our clients who regularly post on social media have the most success. 
    • Brand and reputation management. You can help shape people’s opinions by sharing your 5-star customer reviews and directly addressing issues related to the business — on a daily basis.
    • Savvy potential customers aren’t just looking for a website when they’re researching your business these days, they’re also looking for your social media presence. Keep in mind that Facebook is a search engine and occasionally shows up on page 1 of a search before your website. A Facebook page is another opportunity to rank and another opportunity to attract business.

• So what are waiting for? Let’s get posting! Not sure where to start? For a free consultation, contact (828) 513-0969 or send us an email at hello@arhmediasolutions.com.