If you have a biz, there’s a fair chance you have some sort of social media profile that you market it on. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok and Facebook may seem like a small cog in the machine of how your business functions, but the reality is that they’re an irreplaceable part in growing your customer base. But where do you start?! And if you’ve already begun, where do you go from there? Before you go throwing your phone off a small cliff or burrowing your head (and laptop) in the sand, try these tips and tricks to help grow your business’ social media profile.

SEO IS THE GO Love it or hate it, one of the pillars of digital marketing is SEO (search engine optimisation). What the fudge does that mean, we hear you ask? Basically, SEO is all about strategically designing a website or webpage in order to increase its organic reach to users through search engine results. Think: keywords, meta descriptions and high-quality content. This doesn’t just apply to your biz’s website, either – your social media profiles can really benefit from some optimising, too. An easy place to start is by ensuring your account’s profile – including your username, name and bio – clearly and succinctly illustrates who you are and what you do. SEO is also an important factor to consider when crafting captions for social media. Use keywords in your posts to boost your engagement, alongside a few hashtags (Instagram recommends three to five).

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LOOKS DUMB While there are many ways AI can be used for good, there are just as many uses of it that look, well... stupid. Whether or not you should be using programs like ChatGPT to write your copy or come up with social media campaigns aside, it pays to remember that a million other biz owners are doing the same. That’s all to say, the originality that your small business is built on – including all the things that will make you stand out to someone scrolling their feed – is flattened pretty quickly when you get AI to illustrate said originality.

QUALITY OVER QUANTITY, BUT ALSO QUANTITY HELPS Managing your business’ social media accounts can feel like a full-time job in itself. While platforms like Instagram recommend posting three to five times a week, creating quality content that actually speaks to your audience and reflects your biz can require more time than you’d like it to. Focus on quality first – think about your customer base, what they’d actually like to see or know about your biz, and then think about the most interesting or engaging facets to your business. Home in on those elements and craft fun and creative videos or posts around it, then see if you can stretch your skills and time to creating more of it. One rad reel a week is always better than five flop posts.

COLLABORATION IS KEY One of the key ways that you can tap into and grow your following on social media is by collaborating with other businesses, creators and accounts. Maybe you sell coffee beans – think about doing some content at your local café. Or perhaps you make stationery bits and bobs – what other makers can you partner with to share your accounts’ audiences? Think of it like cross-pollination – building community is bucketloads more valuable than working in competition to each other. 

JUST BE YOURSELF It’s cheesy but it’s true – you’ll find that some of the best biz accounts are so successful because they authentically reflect the business at the core. The old saying should really go, “Don’t be anyone else, because their Instagram profile is already taken”. Of course, jumping on the bandwagon social media trends and borrowing from creator’s formats can be a nifty place to build your profile up from, but forcing yourself and your team to participate in an awkwardly hostile TikTok dance just because it’s trending isn’t going to earn you any fans. People want connection on the internet, and they love to see the people behind a business. Show up as yourself and make content that suits – you’ll have loads more fun that way, too.

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