Everything is on the internet these days. In fact, the mass majority of purchases are done online. What is it about this digital world that we as consumers find so appealing? For starters, it allows us to do what we want when we want. Most people are working beyond the nine to five job. While we may not be pulling down the same hours as the working class prior to the industrial revolution, an eighty hour week is not unheard of. With the cost of living constantly on the rise people find themselves working more and more. How can we as business owners reach more consumers?
Maximize Your Online Real Estate
The answer is clear, we have to up our digital footprints. Luckily, starting a business page on social media platforms is free. This means for little to no cost we can help generate even more traffic to our business. Of course there are always ways we can increase the traffic to these platforms as well. My favorite options are the ones that are little to no cost. Before you ask, yes, there are several ways to generate even more traffic to your business and social media platforms absolutely free! For the sake of time I will focus primarily on one social media platform in this article, Facebook. However, because I want your business to thrive, I will continue to post more ways to up your social media game and boost your sales.
Ride The Facebook Wave
If you have not thought about expanding your reach via social media you are currently doing your business a disservice. Facebook is the third most visited website online. That means there is already traffic on the site and you will not have to actively hunt for more clients or customers. According to a study conducted in 2019 there are an average of 2.5 billion monthly users on Facebook alone. If that wasn’t enough proof that there is an excess of potential clients waiting to learn more about you and your product here are some more fun facts. There are 2.26 billion daily active users on Facebook and during those visits the average user spends about 20 minutes per visit.
Follow The Crowd
Clearly, there is a steady stream of activity on this social media platform. In fact, 42% of businesses polled in 2012 reported that Facebook was critical to their businesses success. With 94% of advertising revenue being done on Facebook it is clear that other companies have taken notice. In the span of just one year the number of business pages created on Facebook more than doubled. During 2012 there were approximately a little under 8 million business pages on Facebook. By the year 2013 there were 16 million business pages on Facebook. Not to mention on average there is 4.75 billion pieces of content shared daily on Facebook alone. With numbers like these it can be easy to get lost in the digital sea.
Build A Relationship
Fortunately for you, I have found mainly through trial and error the most sustainable way to push your content to the top. There are definitely things you can do to that will help peak interest in potential clients. One of the best things you can do for your business is to build a relationship with your audience. How do you build a mutually beneficial relationship online? At the end of the day it boils down to the degree of trust you are able to establish with your audience. One of the best things you can do to build up trust with your audience is to tell them a little bit about your story.
Learn From The Masters
Think back to someone you admire or trust, it can be anyone, but for this exercise try to focus on a celebrity. I want you to think of someone who you love, that in your mind can do no wrong. Once you have a person in mind, write down everything you know about them. You just might find that you may know more about them then some of your closest friends. Here is the thing that sets them apart from your normal circle of friends. Most, if not all, of the information about that individual that you have access to are things they stand to benefit from you knowing. For example, it benefits them to post or share the highlight reel of their lives. Even the information the share that shows their lows, they provide you with information about how they overcame those issues.
Paint A Positive Outlook
When you post information or content on your business page it would be advantageous for you to do something similar. By all means allow your audience to see your vulnerabilities in doing so you actually make it easier for them to open up to you. There are even cases in which someone in your audience is actively dealing with the same issue. Here is the most important thing to keep in mind when you disclose the low points in your life. Always, tell the audience how you overcame that low or provide them with a message of hope. Do your best to end every interaction on a high note. By focusing on a more positive image or vision you help shift future interactions with you and your company in a positive light.
Provide Value
No matter how positive a light you present your information in it is important to provide value to your audience. Now, this value will be different for every business. At the end of the day it should be something that helps improve your audience’s current situation. If you business revolves around a product, don’t cram it down the audience’s throat. Instead, provide them with education regarding the product and why it may or may not benefit them to have. Big name programs do this all the time. Take Apple for example, prior to any launch they have on an upcoming product. They make sure to provide their customers with tons of education on the product and subtle hints why they need it. I am a firm believer and seeing what works for others and applying a similar approach to your own business plan.
Know Your Target
It does not matter how well thought out your plan is if your target is nowhere in sight. There are so many different social media platforms out there to choose from. In fact, if you were to try and establish a dominant presence on all of them, you would never have time to do anything else. With that in mind it is important to take the time to determine who your target demographic is. Facebook is a female dominated platform. However, the gap has steadily been closing. On average the users breakdown as such 76% are female and 34% are male. Now here is the clencher, the largest age demographic is 25-34 year olds. Of this age range, again they make up the bulk of users, the majority was male! At the end of the day if you don’t know your target market you really are dead in the water.
Hit The Mark
Personally, for me this was one of the hardest things to figure out. I honestly, just wanted to help as many people as possible. Unfortunately, in trying to help everyone I realized I wasn’t really helping anyone. When you stop and take the time to figure out who you have the ability to help the most with either your product or services. Yes, you make it more difficult to help everyone, at first. However, as time goes by, you will be able to expand your reach further. Which sounds better, helping everyone with next to nothing. Or changing the lives of a smaller group that can then go on to help even more people? For me, focusing on a smaller group was the key to getting everything rolling. But everyone’s path is different and the reality is that it is a good thing. Everything we go through, all of the ups and downs, help shape us into who we are today and put us on the path that will lead to our future.
Are You Ready To Be An Influencer?
There are tons of ways to increase your exposure online and on the air. Don’t believe me? Be sure to subscribe to my next article that will break down even more ways to extend your reach. If you are a health and wellness expert looking for help to become the next major influencer in your field, I would love to hear from you. I offer an online course that can help you do just that. For more information, book a one-on-one consult call with me. If you are the best at what you do and no one knows you exist, how many people can you help?
I love using Facebook for my business. It’s a great way to get clients to engage with you.