At least 2 billion people use social media platforms annually – that’s a whole market waiting for you to tap into it. No wonder almost every business seems to be launching one form of a social media campaign or the other. But why is this important? Why can’t you sit back, cross your arms, and wait for your customers to look for you? Well, because it does not work like that. For centuries, businesspeople have made do by finding their customers and marketing their products to them. And now, these customers are on social media. So, how can you direct these social media customers to your website? Easy! You follow this proven guide:

Get Your Profile in Order

Whether you are using Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or any other platform, what do customers see when they get to your profile? An ideal profile takes the prospective customer through who you are, what you offer, and where you are. For example, ABC business sells shoes in NYC. To order, you can click on this link. Then you add your business website, and voila, you are halfway done! Ensure that your about section also gives your customers a feel of your vibe. Are you fun, professional, quirky, educative? What are you? Figure it out and showcase that.

Oh, and while you are at it, boost your following. See, your bio could be everything that a customer hopes for – but your followers could be lacking. Say, for example, you have 100 followers. Does that inspire trust in the prospective customers? No, it gives them an inkling that you are still new and might not have garnered enough confidence in the community. So, avoid this and buy Twitter followers at cheap prices as you build on gaining more followers. That way, a customer will peek at your bio, see thousands of followers, and think, aha, you are a good fit!

Make Your Content Shareable

Social media users love sharing things they love with others. And what better to couple this with some brand exposure and education? What do we mean by this? People are not always going to look at your website to buy something. Sometimes, they just want to see what is available and make a mental note. But you know what can keep them coming? – an active blog. Say, for example, you own ABC Business which sells shoes in NYC. Now, how do you blog about that? You can write pretty much anything about shoes – how to choose shoes, which shoes are perfect for this event, the shoes that are ideal for a night out dancing. Write exciting content and share it on social media.

When people see such posts, they can follow the links, enjoy the content, and look through your store. Ensure you include inbound links in the blog but without being too salesy. That way, it’s an easy read that will not put off potential clients.

The next part comes in making the blog content shareable on social media. See, a prospective customer could read the blog, love it, but is not ready to buy the shoes. What can they do? They can share the blog! Given that their social media reach is quite different from yours, you will benefit from casting your net into a different part of the sea. It helps if they are influential because that part of the sea could have plenty of fish. So, get writing and share your content – you never know who’s reading it.

Know Your Audience

The first thing you should do before joining a social media platform is to ask yourself if your audience uses it. For example, if most of your audience uses Twitter, that’s an excellent platform to capitalize on – think like this for every platform you consider. Is your target audience using it? If not, you will be marketing the right goods to the wrong people. 

The second thing is to figure out how and when they use it. For example, are the most active in the mornings? Are they night owls? Are there any specific hours you can target that would have you benefiting from peak hours? To figure this out, you must do with some trial and error. How so? Start by posting at different times of the day and watch the analytics.

You can focus on the reach at this point because that’s the number of people who have seen your content. At this point, we are not concerned with whether they like it but whether they see it. Now, aim to post at the times when they are most active. For example, you could realize that your audience is most active on Sunday evenings. Then you can save your premium content for this time.

What’s the third thing? – Figuring out what your audience likes. You’ve found your audience, figured out when they are active, and now, it’s time to sell to them. But how? You start by gauging the content they love the most. Do they respond more to fun ads? Or do they prefer when you share educational content? Figure this out and flood your pages with such content. After all, there’s no point in creating content that does not appeal to the target audience.

Direct Your Audience

So, a prospective client has seen your content, liked it, and even shared it. But what will get them to buy your goods or services? – a call to action! Calls to action come in different forms. You can post it on pictures, refer to it in videos, or direct your audience to a link on your bio. Do not forget to direct your audience to your website whenever you make an ad. Else, someone could be willing to buy what you’re offering but could be put off by the lack of information.

Remember to stay active. You are not only on social media to hit your sales targets – you are also there to get to know your customers better. Who are they? What do they love about your business? Is there anything you can do to enhance their experiences? Find out by interacting with them. You could even come across a gap you had earlier missed. All the best!