You will likely have one (or even several) social media pages for your business. But is it getting the best out of it? |
If your business does not yet have a social media page, know that active and consistent communication on these platforms can help you to be closer to your audience. In addition, it will help to strengthen the connection with your customers and make your brand stand out from your competitors. Data from Data Reportal tells us that, in January 2022, Portugal had 8.50 million users on social networks. This number, which also includes company social media pages, represents around 83% of the Portuguese population. In the study “The Portuguese and Social Networks, also from 2022, by Marketest, it is estimated that the number of social networks in which the Portuguese have an account has more than doubled in the last 10 years. And Instagram is already the social network with the highest penetration among younger users. Looking at this data, we can see that there are many people who are present on social networks every day. If you are not strategically positioning your business on these platforms, you are wasting business opportunities. Still, as with all subjects, there are advantages and disadvantages. Throughout this article, we will show you the advantages and disadvantages of marketing on social networks. There are also some tips that you can follow to overcome the disadvantages. Check out 10 advantages of marketing on social networks:1. Reach large audiences. As we saw in the data presented above, there are millions of users of social networks, in the Portuguese universe alone. Therefore, it is a great opportunity for your business to reach a large number of people who may be interested in what your brand has to offer. 2. Establish a direct line of communication with your audience. Marketing on social networks is one of the few strategies that allow you to establish a direct relationship with your audience. Communication between followers and your brand gives you the opportunity to:
You can also use this information and privileged relationship with your audience to optimize your strategy in order to respond even better to your customers' needs. 3. Possibility to create organic content. Another great advantage of social networks is the possibility of creating organic content, that is, without having to spend money. This advantage gives you the possibility to deliver valuable information that is useful to your followers and potential customers. You can also publish all the content you want to interact with your audience. 4. Easy access to paid ad services. Despite everything that is possible to do organically on social networks, it is often necessary to go further to achieve even better results. You can choose to invest in ad campaigns and sponsored publications, thanks to the tools provided by each platform. Thus, you will achieve better results aligned with your goals. You'll also be able to segment your ads so that they appear in the feed of users who are interested in or looking for your products or services. It is important to bear in mind that the paid possibilities will vary depending on the platform you use. Thanks to advertisements on social networks, you will also be able to expand your business and find new customers.
Find out how we can help your business through Facebook Ads! 5. Build brand recognition. Another advantage of social networks is being able to build a reputation for your brand. When you publish content on social networks, you are exposing your brand and your values to your followers. Over time this exposure will translate into greater recognition, as the more people are exposed to your brand, the more familiar it becomes. Your brand familiarity will bring you more conversions because people tend to buy/order services from brands they know well. Another interesting point is the possibility of sharing the contents that were published organically. Your audience will be able to share the contents you publish on your brand page with their network of contacts. This will translate into even more recognition growth and is a great way to attract new people and generate new conversions. Therefore, do not forget, it is very important to bet on content that is relevant to people and that, in addition to promoting your business, meets the interests of the audience. 6. Drive traffic to your website. Social media is a great tool to drive traffic to your business website. Since, when you publish content on social networks, you have the possibility of adding a link to direct your audience to your website. On the website, your audience will be able to learn more about the content you have published, as well as learn more about your business. You can also use your website to place a form where your customers can make appointments, if it makes sense for your business. Have you read this article? “The importance of investing in a professional website”. 7. Possibility to evaluate performance. Social networks allow you to monitor the performance of your content and campaigns in detail. Thanks to the statistics provided by each platform, you can determine how many people saw your publication, how many likes and comments it got, how many shares were made and even what date and time your publications had the most reach, among other data. Something similar happens with campaigns. If you have an active ad campaign, you can evaluate its performance in real time and optimize your content in order to improve results. 8. Creating a social media account is free! One of the biggest advantages of social media is probably the fact that it's completely free to get started. None of the major platforms require payments when creating your account, which gives you the freedom to invest as much or as little as you want and only when and if you feel it necessary. 9. Users help your business grow. Through shares, comments and mentions, your followers are helping your business grow and there is even a possibility that your content will go viral. This phenomenon does not happen in any other aspect of marketing. On social networks, you publish content that is seen and shared by your followers, who, in turn, share it with their followers and so on. Thanks to shares, you will have a much greater reach than expected and at a lower cost when compared to a traditional marketing campaign. 10. Opportunity to gather valuable insights. Social networks are an excellent source of information about your consumers. You can, and should, take advantage of this information to get to know your audience's characteristics in more detail and make better strategic decisions. Here you can focus on what people like about you and your business and how you can improve your products or services to better meet your audience's needs. If you know how to take advantage of these insights, you will be able to stand out from your competitors.
However, as with any marketing strategy, there are also disadvantages. Disadvantages that don't mean you shouldn't bet on your business's social media. On the contrary, you can see the disadvantages as obstacles to overcome in the course of developing your strategy. Discover 4 disadvantages of marketing on social networks and find out the best way to overcome each one:1. May receive negative feedback. People don't use social media just to share content they like or identify with. It is often to social networks that consumers turn to share things they don't like and less good experiences they had with a brand. How to overcome? A negative review or comment is also an opportunity to admit the mistake and apologize, if necessary. In short, don't leave negative comments unanswered. It is natural that your business will not please everyone or that less positive situations may arise. However, knowing how to respond to criticism will humanize your business and demonstrate your values. 2. You are more exposed to polemics and embarrassing situations. It's essential to be careful with what you post on your business's social media. There will always be someone waiting to make a mistake. As we saw earlier in the advantages, it is easy to share content on social networks and this content can even go viral. And if good content is harder to go viral, an embarrassing situation or a controversy can go viral in a few minutes. How to overcome? Before posting or sharing any type of content, do a lot of research about the information you are conveying. Also be aware of possible negative connotations of your content, whether it be a photo, video, text, or even a simple hashtag. A well-conducted research and careful content production will prevent you from seeing your business involved in embarrassing and controversial situations in the future. 3. Campaigns and original content creation take a lot of time. As far as social networks are concerned, it is not enough to appear once and that's it. A marketing strategy on social networks must be an ongoing process, which therefore requires a lot of time and attention on our part. It is necessary to always be on top of events, create and share new content with some regularity, interact with followers and also attend to results and possible optimizations. As you can see, it is a process that requires dedication and it is not always possible for companies to spend so much time on this aspect. How to overcome? If you don't have time in your day to dedicate to social media and being left out is not an option, you should consider handing this task over to a digital marketing agency. As we have already understood, managing campaigns can be challenging and at the agency you will find professionals who have years of experience in these matters and will help you to boost your business. It's not just campaigns that benefit from outside help. Its contents can also be included in the cake. Look for a digital marketing agency that will help you design a marketing strategy on social networks, with a consistent communication plan adapted to your audience and the various platforms. 4. You have to wait to see results. When we invest our money in something, we want to see immediate results. Social media is no different. It's natural to want to know if the effort and money invested is being well spent. However, social networks will not bring instant results. It is necessary to maintain regularity in publishing content and adjust campaigns in order to find what works best for your business. It's important to remember that social media management is a marathon, not a sprint. How to overcome? The only way to overcome this drawback is to be patient. Often you will only get results after a few weeks of testing and optimization. Still, for all the advantages we listed earlier, it will be worth it! While waiting for the results, you can direct your attention to the performance of your organic publications and understand what the next step might be. Got questions? Contact us! Need help with your business social media? At Global Pixel we deliver:
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