7 Rules of Social Networking Small Businesses Need to Follow

Social networks need no introduction. Be it the Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and now Google Plus. We have all been there, done that. Though initially developed as a platform to connect people and giving them a chance to share with their friends and families, these platforms have now grown into full-fledged marketing mediums. The large communities of registered members become your audience and the networks become an integral form of marketing for your small business.

With Facebook’s 500 million users, Twitter’s 200 million users and Google plus users exceeding 20 million, social networks are indeed a Godsend for small businesses, a free yet powerful marketing tool. However, there are certain guidelines that you must follow to ensure that your business gains some recognition amidst fierce competition and rivalry. Here are 7 essential commandments that all small business must follow if they want to get noticed at social networks!

1). Thou Shall Communicate!

Just like you need to communicate with your family members, your spouse, your friends and peers, you also need to communicate with your contacts. They have done you a favor by liking your page, allowing you into their circle, or accepting to follow your tweets. If you don’t get in touch with them, you’ll be missing a great chance. People will eventually lose interest in companies and businesses that gives nothing in return – not even some words. Don’t take your constant promotional messages as communication; in fact too many messages meant solely for self promotion can be a huge turning off point. The art to communication is to stir interest, create intrigue, and prompt people to think. Create opinion or voting posts; ask people questions and give them answers.

2). Thou Shall Be Creative

Just because you are running a coupon code website, doesn’t mean you can keep putting up the coupons like $ or $. You can try to engage others in communication, add videos, an article or simple tips to make the most of discount codes. Be creative in your communication. Try coming up with content that customers would like to share with their friends and peers, thus bringing in more potential clients for your business.

3). Thou Shall Remain Connected

Don’t stay away from your business profile for too long. Keep sharing interesting content once in a while and let customers know about the progress of your business or anything else happening in your industry. Create a bond with your audience and ask them for opinions and suggestions over what they like or dislike about your business. Pamper customers who have purchased products or services from you and maintain a good customer relationship.

4). Thou Shall Remain Updated

If you don’t stay updated with the latest happenings in the industry, customers may disqualify you as a competent business or professional. Always stay updated with latest news from your field and make sure you are keeping them updated as well. Be a keen observer and bring up news for your customers.

5). Thou Shall Give Benefits to Customers

What advantages are you providing to customers for joining your business page and connecting with you? If you get a little creative, you can offer a lot to your social contacts, you can invite customers to participate in a discussion or competition and declare gifts or discount coupons for people with the best contributions. This will allure the people to contribute and share, as a result bringing in potential customers. Providing benefits to customers on a social platform is a definite boost up for your company.

6). Thou Shall Write Like Crazy

The more content you can share, the more you will be able to yield from social networks. But writing is not limited to writing articles and sharing, it can be a simple thought or opinion on some latest development. Entice readers to comment and share their opinions and view-points. Add informative articles or blog posts to your website and share it on Facebook, Twitter, or Google Plus and whenever possible, create press releases. You will have to improve your writing skills, the more you do the more you will be able to engage prospective customers.

7). Thou Shall Upload Media Content

Many people are not keen of reading long articles; they are more interested in photos or videos. Upload any interesting video related to the industry, or share pictures of your company. People need to know the face of the company. This is one way they will feel connected to your business. Staying active on social media can result in traffic, credibility, as well as customer loyalty for your small business, but only if you are doing it the right way.

Author’s Bio:

[note]Arba is completing her degree in business marketing. In her spare time, she loves to write. Currently, she is working for verybestsoftware.net, which is a coupon website with special discounts for software.[/note]