Digital Marketing for Small and Medium Businesses
The number of small and medium businesses (SMBs) has increased immensely over the past year, with more SMBs projected to crop up in the middle of 2019. The reasons for the increase of these business ventures can vary from entrepreneur to entrepreneur, but they stem largely from individuals wanting to follow passions and charting their own course in life.
SMBs are also changing the business landscape, with more entrepreneurs choosing to work in small offices or co-working spaces, employing only a skeleton workforce, and utilizing digital technology like Customer Relationship Management systems to automate work processes.
Small and medium businesses rely largely on marketing to get their products and services out to the world; without a reliable marketing team, they may as well be peddling their goods on the street. Aside from driving sales, small businesses are also utilizing marketing strategies to build brand awareness, according to a report from Leadpages in 2017.
This leads SMBs to utilize social media as part of their digital marketing strategy, with 96 percent of small and medium businesses using social media for their marketing plans, according to Social Media Examiner. This is a smart move for most small and medium businesses, since the majority of the world’s population has at least one social media profile.
In an increasingly digital world, having a digital presence is very important in order to drive sales and build brand awareness. But it’s also important to note that businesses should also learn to utilize their social media channels effectively.
Instagram, for example, has a host of tools to help businesses manage their presence on the site. SMBs can take advantage of the business profile option available on Instagram. This can help them manage their stats, and know which post is generating more Instagram likes than others. Facebook algorithms, on the other hand, have veered away from organic likes and have focused instead on targeted ads to allow businesses to reach the right demographics. Facebook provides select information to businesses based on user behavior on the site to give businesses an easier time in finding the right market for their products or services.
Knowing the numbers is just part of the equation. Consumer behavior has changed vastly over the years, with more and more consumers choosing to patronize brands that speak to them on a personal level. That means that the brand has to cater not only to their needs, but also to their values and belief systems. A vegan, for example, would not buy any makeup products that contain animal by-product like beeswax, in the same way that someone who tries to live a sustainable lifestyle will refrain from supporting a fashion label that does not have a sustainable approach to the manufacturing of their clothes.
Brands who engage with their followers on social media are more likely to receive positive feedback and a more loyal customer base than those who do not. In a world full of influencers, vloggers, and industry gurus, it’s easy to see why. SMBs employing social media as part of their digital marketing strategy also have to consider this as part of that strategy in order to have an effective online presence.
