If you told a room full of business owners that you had found a way to generate more leads, more clients, and more sales for free, most wouldn’t hesitate to say, “Sign us up, please!”
But if you were to put the same people in front of a Twitter account, many of the folks who had been looking for more customers just moments prior would be saying, “Wait a minute! I thought you said we could get leads!”
At this point, the benefits of social media marketing are undeniable.
But on a scale of “Olympic-level fit” to “I should’ve taken my New Year’s resolutions more seriously,” most companies have social media accounts that are just there.
And that’s where we come in.
We’re going to explain the benefits of social media marketing. And then, we’ll talk about how you can make it worthwhile for your company.
Sound good? Keep reading.
What Exactly Is Social Media Marketing?
As far as definitions go, social media marketing is exactly what it says on the tin.
It’s a marketing strategy that uses social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Snapchat, to name a few, to put your company in front of prospects.
You can market using either paid options or free options.
And depending on the strategy you employ, you could be using your social media posts to build up your reputation, drive sales, get more eyeballs on your blog posts, or even a combination of all three.
Plus, if you’re really next-level when it comes to your social media marketing game, your back-end activities can include using the information you learn about your followers to make more content and generate even more results.
Here are 11 Reasons Why 99% of Businesses Could Benefit From Social Media Marketing
A lot of companies have an approach to social media that suffers from a bad case of we-have-no-idea-what-we-want-from-this-itis. In other words, their social media accounts exist for the sake of existing.
If you’ve been on the fence about using social media to market your business, here are some very good reasons to consider making it a permanent part of your marketing approach:
Benefit #1: Brand Recognition
Every major business you can think of started from nothing.
But even so, how do we know that the Coca-Cola bears are Coca-Cola or that Mickey Mouse is Disney?
Because over the years, we’ve all learned how to recognize those brands.
According to SmallBizGenius, presenting a brand consistently across platforms can increase a company’s revenue by as much as 23%.
While you might not have multinational corporate aspirations for your company, social media can do a lot to take you from “Who are you again?” to “Oh! You specialize in that!” in the minds of people who might not otherwise have heard of you.
Benefit #2: You Can Connect Directly With Leads
Before the internet, your business would have had to basically win the lottery in order for you to connect with a celebrity or an important company executive.
One of the coolest things about social media is that you can reach just about anybody without worrying about impatient receptionists or well-coordinated security teams.
Think about it.
Elon Musk is routinely in the news for his tweets.
If your ideal clients are on social media at all, marketing through these platforms can make it possible for you to connect with them directly.
Benefit #3: It’s Possible to Get More Traffic to Your Website
Most people don’t suddenly flip from kinda, sorta, hearing about you somewhere to raving about your products.
There’s a process to turning social media users into mega-fans that often starts with finding your funnel.
If you don’t have a marketing strategy, however, it’s easy to end up launching products to silence and crickets. Social media is a straightforward way of getting eyeballs on your site.
Benefit #4: Social Media Makes It Possible to Social Listen
A company can have the most epic product of all time available at the best price ever, but if it isn’t able to convince prospects of its awesomeness, the concept is dead on arrival.
In copywriting, there’s a concept called Voice of Customer research. People often spend paragraph after paragraph talking about what this is and how to do it, but basically, here’s the main idea:
Products and services will generally sell better to customers if you can find ways of reflecting people’s use of language back at them.
If you’re a smaller business, however, you might not have the money to run everything by a focus group. Social media marketing lets you see what your prospects are saying right now for free.
Just saying.
Benefit #5: It Gives You an Avenue to Promote Your Content
The whole “If you build it, they will come.” adage made sense back when the internet was still in diapers.
But in 2021 and beyond?
Not so much.
According to Letter.ly, 4.4 million new blog posts are published every day. When you also think about how many people are uploading videos on YouTube or posting on Instagram and Facebook on a daily basis, the numbers are jaw-droppingly high.
It’s not enough to just put great content out there. You have to promote it. Social media marketing gives you a better chance of being seen.
Benefit #6: You Can Put Your Story Out There
In 2019, the global box office raked in over $42.5 billion.
What exactly drives people to get dressed up, go to the movies, and hand over their hard-earned money to watch superhero flicks?
The power of storytelling. That’s what.
If you sit down and think hard, the chances are that your business has an incredible story to tell. Maybe you found an underserved market by accident, or maybe you source products in a way that makes your business uniquely you.
When people are at the checkout line or they’re browsing your store, they often don’t have the option of connecting with your brand in a personal way. A solid social media marketing strategy can change that.
Benefit #7: It Gives You the Ability to Level Up Your Customer Service
Some people are really into phone calls. They like to hear all the vocal inflections and tone changes that can happen in a conversation.
Other people prefer email or text.
Social media isn’t just about you reaching out to customers. It makes it possible for customers to reach you if they have any problems.
And with 96% of surveyed customers reporting that customer service is a key factor in their brand loyalty decision-making, a responsive social media account can be instrumental in helping you offer the type of top-notch customer service that turns buyers into lifelong fans.
Benefit #8: You Just Might Save a Bundle on Marketing Costs
A radio spot, some primetime television commercials, and a catchy jingle can go a long way towards getting your name out there.
But if you’re a business owner who’s operating with a smaller budget than, say, the United States government, it costs money to keep that momentum going.
One of the biggest benefits of social media marketing is that it’s a relatively low-cost marketing method. Making an account is free, and so is posting engaging content that people want to share.
Benefit #9: The Links Can Give You Credibility With Google
When search engines decide how to rank something, they often look at a bunch of on-page factors like your keywords, your metadata, and the title of your piece.
Alongside all of that, however, they’ll also look at backlinks, or links pointing to your page, to try and figure out if people are finding your content helpful.
Popular tweets and viral pins can help you rank high in the search engines. And if you come from the “Free traffic is good traffic.” school of thought, that counts for a lot.
Benefit #10: You Can Become an Authority in Your Niche
Picture this.
You’re a florist and you’re looking for an accountant ahead of tax season. You run a Google search for “florist accountant,” and now you’re choosing between:
Heather, a CPA and all-around solid generalist.
And
Jennifer, an accountant who has been working with florists for the last 10 years.
You’re more likely to hire Jennifer if you’re a florist, right?
Social media marketing allows you to build that kind of credibility in your niche.
If a client can Google you and find a bunch of blog posts you’ve written that clearly make people say, “Whoa. This person knows what they’re talking about.”, it becomes a lot easier to sell them on your products and services.
Benefit #11: You Can Go Viral
Remember the Gangnam Style phenomenon that swept the internet in 2012?
Sometimes it’s possible to capture lightning in a bottle, take over the internet, and become an overnight sensation.
But even if going viral doesn’t look like being featured on Good Morning America in your niche, shares and likes can go a long way towards putting your content in front of people who may need your goods and services.
Social media has a built-in potential for virality that you don’t always find on other types of marketing platforms.
