Social media is crucial for businesses nowadays and it's one of the most important aspects of digital marketing, helping you reach millions of potential customers worldwide.
So let's keep this simple...your business NEEDS an online presence and nowadays a website alone won't be good enough.
There is such a disconnect between the agricultural businesses and their customers - and what better way to bridge the gap than through social media? Social media is free marketing! If you want to increase your sales, improve relationships with your customers, and engage with them without spending a lot of money, you need to have a social media presence.
When you make your customers feel connected with you and your business it helps you grow and as more of the world gets involved with social media - more people will expect to find you there!
It doesn't matter if you are introducing your new business to the social media world or just wanting to expand your presence online, social media marketing doesn't have to be overly complicated or overwhelming.
I remember when I first started out on my social media journey and I was super excited about everything to come but I had no idea where to actually begin- it made my head spin!
So, I've designed this strategy to help guide you and grow your influence on social media without all the trial and error, the headaches, and all the endless google searching that I had to do!
Let's get to it~
#1. have strong branding
It's crucial for you to ensure consistency within all your social media platforms and your businesses' website. Having a strong "Brand Identity" can help you land clients, get more followers, and build your network faster! How do you create a consistent brand identity?
Use the Same Name Across all Social Media
This may be obvious but make sure you get the same social media handle (username) on each platform that you want to use. From Website to Facebook. You don't need to use every single platform. Use the ones that make the most sense to your business. Maybe this is just Facebook, or maybe it's Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter! This step helps viewers recognize who the account belongs to and that they landed on the right page. It builds brand loyalty.
Use a Professional Profile Photo or Logo
This is so important because this is the face of your business! Your photo or logo should represent your business's vision, making it easier for people to connect with you.
Regardless of which type of profile photo you choose to use, make sure it's the same or very similar across all of your social media accounts.
Maybe you already have a logo, or you are the quite literal "face" of your business, this is a very important step and this is not something you want to change often, so it's best not to cut corners here, trust me.
If you invest in quality from the beginning you save time and money later by not having to "re-brand" over and over again. You want your business to be easily recognizable and constantly changing or re-branding will actually work against you. -- I sadly learned this the hard way. Reach out to a professional photographer and get some headshots done or get some commercial or lifestyle photos taken, ones that you can use across your social media, website, and even create content with! You can use them on ads, posts, cover photos, banners, etc. In that case, the investment will help you in more ways than one! Even if you plan to take a lot of photos yourself, having quality photos of your business and/or products and services goes a long way and sets you apart from the rest!
Use Consistent Colors & Fonts
You also maintain a consistent online presence by using the same brand colors and typography throughout your entire website, blog posts, social media graphics, Facebook cover images, client contracts, presentations, etc. This also helps viewers recognize quickly who the account or content belongs to building more brand loyalty.
If this something your interested in let's talk! I'll develop a package for your specific needs!
#2. Know Your Audience
When marketing online it is crucial you know who exactly you are marketing to and trying to reach. It's a huge world out there and if you try connecting with everyone your voice will get lost.
You should already have a basic idea of who your ideal client is and have a base profile of them from age, career, income, what car they drive, what hobbies they have. By knowing all these things you can create content that resonates with them. Use the same language, jokes, call them by name..."Hey Horse Lovers..."
This will help weed out the people who are not in your ideal market so you can grab the attention of those who are and you can curate content specifically for them to engage upon.
#3. Tell A Story
Nowadays people are more disconnected from agriculture than they ever have been. For example, people don't know how their food is grown, where it comes from, or the work that goes into producing it, however...
People connect with stories.
Create pieces of content that tell YOUR STORY. This can be personal, a family history, a brand/businesses' story...You don't need to share your entire life but helping people get to know you, is a great way to connect with them, and that in turn builds trust.
Evoke Reaction or Emotion
Tell your story in new and interesting ways. Find a way to grab your follower's attention and make them remember your brand. If you can evoke a reaction with your content your audience will pay attention to you!
The goal is to make someone stop what they are doing and create a response. There are millions of stories out there, but a great one will make you feel...react...
"A few months ago I bought flowers for the entire NYC VaynerMedia office. It wasn’t a holiday and therefore it was entirely unexpected so it evoked a feeling of surprise and delight. People were pleased and the reaction was a mix of happiness, positivity and a boosted morale. If that day was Valentine’s Day it might have been a little bit more expected and the story would have been more cliche and therefore wouldn’t evoke as much of a response. It’s all about the setup, the punchline and hacking people’s expectations." - Gary Vaynerchuk
#4. Create Valuable Content on a Regular Basis
What makes content valuable?
The best content is useful. Helpful. It offers VALUE beyond what the business is trying to sell. It will earn you respect and trust. It will build customer relationships.
If you want to be noticed on social media, you need to put out consistent valuable content regularly. It will help you create new leads and will help capture information on your followers that you can use to provide further value! It can also help move prospective customers forward to making an actual sale by answering questions or concerns before the potential customers even know to ask the question!
Maybe it's recipes if you homestead or horse care tips if you run a barn. Maybe it's facts about why it's important to support local farmers or an infographic about the benefits of buying your meat from a local farmer vs. Walmart.
The content you create all helps to improve SEO - Seach Engine Optimization!
"Content-driven sites generate 97% more external links, a critical factor in how Google judges your domain’s authority. So if you want to improve modern SEO, you need strong content.
For example, If you mainly use Facebook for your brand or business you should be posting at the VERY LEAST a few times a week. Ideally once or twice a day.
Don't forget though, the same content you created for Facebook can be used on Instagram, Twitter, your website too! Reuse and Repurpose it to get the most use out of it! You don't have to put it on every platform on the same day maybe you can repurpose it and use it at a later time or use it as a "throwback" to see how far you've come!
I know that sounds like a lot but if you create content about your story & document your journey, you will NEVER run out of content!
Embrace who you are and your journey. Your content doesn't have to be 100% perfect or worthy of an art gallery. The most important thing is to start sharing, put yourself out there, and embrace the realness of it all.
Make an outline describe your thoughts, wins, losses, anxieties, ideas, and ambitions and start documenting yourself and your brand's journey and you will never run out of content!
Today there is no shortage of ways to create content so I'll list a few: Images, Videos, Podcasts, Infographics, Articles, Blogs, Reposts of other people's content, Repurposing your own.
#5. Create a CLEAR "Call-to-Action"
What is a "Call-to-Action"?
A CTA is a request that your audience takes a specific action. The action will vary but it should connect with the topic of your content. The entire goal is to create further interaction and make your viewers aware of something you offer, just make sure it is relevant and direct.
Your audience doesn't want to guess what they should do next. End each piece of content you create with a simple and powerful request for engagement. Don't hold back on asking them to take further action.
Your CTA can be:
At the end of a blog post
After the last line of copy on a web page
At the end of a video or audio recording
On printed materials, such as brochures and catalogs
Within content when relevant, either in line with the copy or in a callout box
In a clickable button
CTA Samples:
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Now I could go on all day but I don't want to keep you. Just remember- we are trying to bridge the gap between the agriculture industry and our customers and the best way to do that is through Social Media.
I hope these tips help connect you with even more potential customers and clients. If you have any questions please contact me!