Matt Bacak: Mastering Social Media Is Easy

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Social media is an avenue that cannot be ignored for entrepreneurs, no matter the area of their business. Upwards of 70% of online adults use Facebook and almost 20% use Twitter reported a study published in 2013. Expect that those numbers have increased since 2014 with more adults using not only Facebook and Twitter but other social media sites like Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn more frequently, too.

So what does that mean for an internet marketer?

Simple. If you’re not using these sites, you’re potentially losing money. That’s the bottom line. Getting started is often the hardest part but here’s some quick tips I’ve compiled to get you going in the right direction but the most important thing to keep in mind is that if you haven’t already got an online presence in social media, you need to get started today.

1. Post Regularly – In today’s online world, companies and people are posting content consistently to stay on top of the game. It’s especially important to get a lot of material out to the public in the very beginning because you are establishing yourself in the online community. Posting too infrequently can lose you lots of followers.
2. Content is King – What I mean by that is that if you aren’t posting QUALITY content, you are wasting your time. The internet is a huge collection of ideas and if you aren’t providing your followers with relevant information, you can be sure they’re going to find it somewhere else. With the plethora of options available to them, give them a dang good reason to stay on your site, your Facebook wall, your YouTube channel.
3. Think Globally – This should be common sense but it bears mentioning because it’s easy to fall into the thinking that your content is only reaching a small audience but the truth is that what you’re posting has the potential to reach people all the way across the globe. Internet marketing is for the world, not just the country where you live. Just because someone lives somewhere else doesn’t mean they can’t benefit from the information you’re providing. So in terms of creating your blog or wall post, think about how it will be viewed by people in other places. Will they understand what you’ve posted? Will they enjoy it?
4. Don’t Just Sell – It’s tempting to use social media to sell your products and I’m not saying you shouldn’t. Of course you should but there is a fine line between overselling and selling just the right amount. People don’t use Twitter to buy products. The main purpose of sites like Twitter or Facebook is to engage with the world around us and people will be turned off quickly if you’re only using these platforms to fatten your wallet. I’m not saying you should never sell anything. I am saying find a balance between providing consumers with information and giving them the opportunity to purchase from you.
5. Think in Terms of ROI – As a businessman, I am always thinking of return on investment. I know there are some people out there who will read this article and think, that’s a waste of my time. Let me tell you why it isn’t. The time you invest into creating an online presence through social media is worth it. People take notice of the things you post. They see how you interact with your consumers, how you handle support inquiries, and learn what type of person/business you are through your feed. Though someone who finds you on one of those sites may not immediately purchase from you, chances are, given time, they will come back for more if you are following these tips and when they do… you’ll be ready for them.